


Same People, But Not Really

by KittyDemon9000



Category: Lego Ninjago, The LEGO Ninjago Movie (2017)
Genre: Crossover, Found Family, Pre-Movie, Protective Kai, Season/Series 02, Threats of Violence, is it found family if they’re dimensional counterparts of your own?, someone get kai to therapy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-17
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:33:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 24,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28136997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KittyDemon9000/pseuds/KittyDemon9000
Summary: Kai quickly rolled over and carefully worked his cuffed hands in front of him. He practically ripped off the bag, only to be blinded by the sight before him.Ninjago City. Or, at least he thought it was Ninjago city. It was lit with every color of the rainbow, drowning out the stars above. The buildings all around him were the size of the tallest buildings in Ninjago City, but they didn’t even come close to the tower in the middle of the city.Where in Ninjago was he?——————Aka Kai gets zapped to the Movieverse and shenanigans ensue
Relationships: Cole & Kai (Ninjago), Cole & Lloyd Garmadon & Kai & Nya & Jay Walker & Zane, Kai & Jay Walker, Kai & Nya (Ninjago), Kai & Zane (Ninjago), Lloyd Garmadon & Kai
Comments: 306
Kudos: 410





	1. Chapter 1

“Hey, green bean.” Kai said, coming up from behind the younger ninja-in-training. He ruffled his hair, much to the latter’s dismay.

“Ready for training today?” 

Lloyd let out a groan, but followed the red ninja off the Bounty and into the nearby forest. It was a rare weekend of no Garmadon attacks, so they could afford to leave the city, if only for a short while.

“So what are we focusing on today?” Lloyd asked as he was jumping across the boulders along the edge of the path. Granted, the others had to go on patrol just to be sure, but still. It wasn’t often they could leave the city at all.

“Well, we’ll do a bit of the usual balance and stretching and what not,” Kai started. “But then I was thinking we could have some fun.”

“Really!” Lloyd exclaimed, almost falling off the rock. His eyes were bright with excitement. 

“Yep.” Kai said, popping the ‘p.’ “You may be the destined savior of ninjago, but you’re still a kid.”

As they came into a clearing, Kai set down the bag he’d brought. Inside was some food and water, as well as a few other things.

“ _And_ , since the others are on Garmadon Duty, we have almost the whole day.” Lloyd was practically vibrating at this point. Even though Kai was sharing his excitement, he couldn’t help but feel a little sad for the ninja-in-training.

Ever since Kai had( _stupidly, oh so stupidly_ ) revealed Lloyd’s destiny, he had practically the entire world on his shoulders. Training, day in, day out, with usually only an hour to goof off and just be a kid. It…..it reminded Kai so much of his own childhood, or lack thereof. Taken away far too soon.

Kai clapped. “Well, let’s get started. The sooner we finish, the more time we’ll have.”

And shockingly, with Lloyd so motivated, he _flew_ through training in record time. Four hours and a very tired Kai and Lloyd later, it was time. The sun had long since risen, being around midday. 

There in the middle of kickball, and Kai would’ve been lying if he said he was going easy on Lloyd. He was just so fast and small, Kai stood no chance.

“Hah! Got ya again!” Lloyd cried out as he made yet another goal. Kai laughed.

“That you did.” He ruffled Lloyd’s hair, giving the boy a bright smile. 

But then Kai felt a prickle on the back of his neck. The same kind that he got when he was being….. _watched._

In a smooth movement Kai picked up Lloyd, much to his excitement, and spun him around. In the split seconds when he was spinning, just fast enough for the world to not blur too badly, he made out a single glowing yellow eye with a black slit in the darkness of the wood.

Venomari. And more importantly _Garmadon._

“Lloyd.” Kai whispered as he placed him down. “When I say ‘go,’ I want you to run back to the Bounty as fast as you can. Don’t stop, no matter what.”

The young boy nodded, a look of slight confusion. He didn’t know what was happening, but he trusted Kai.

“How about we play a game of hide n seek?” He suggested aloud. “But don’t do too far, okay. We won’t want you getting lost.” With his back to the Venomari, he gave Lloyd a quick wink, just in case.

A look of slight fear flashed across Lloyd’s face, but it was quickly replaced by the same wide-eyed happiness he’d shown thus far.

“Got it!”

“Okay.” Kai almost comically turned around so he was looking almost directly at the Venomari. In fact, if he hadn’t been looking for someone he probably would’ve missed them completely. Their eyes blended in almost perfectly with the bright yellow flowers.

“Go!” He shouted, making a show of covering his eyes. “One! Two! Three!”

Behind him, he heard Lloyd _bolt_. Good.

“Four! Five! Six!”

In front of him he could hear the quiet footsteps of the Venomari.

“Seven! Eight! Nine!”

They were heading right for him.

“Ten!”

On the number, Kai ducked and rolled out of the way, just barely dodging a blast of Venomari venom. Not even a second later, he tackled the snake in it’s stomach and forced them back into the flowers.

Quickly, he straddled it, using his knees to pine down it’s arms with one hand firmly clamped around their mouth with the other around their neck.

For a few seconds the Venomari squirmed, spitting quite a bit of their venom on his hand(gross) before stopping and giving him a smug look.

Uh oh-

Before Kai even had a chance to finish the thought, he felt a sharp pinch on his neck. When removed his hand from the Venomari’s throat to feel it, he felt a blow dart.

“Crap.”

It was mere seconds before his limbs felt like jelly and he collapsed onto the snake. The Venomari easily shoved him off, standing up and brushing themselves off.

“Took you long enough!” The first one said. A second snake, also a Venomari, stepped into Kai’s very limited view.

“Well would you rather me _not_ shoot him? Aiming’ssss hard. I don’t know why they didn’t assign Dendro or Asssp. They’re the bessst stinkin 'shots in the tribe.” The Venomari mumbled the last bit as they kicked a rock. Kai would have laughed if he wasn’t paralyzed. “Besidesss, the boss isn’t gonna be happy we didn’t get the green one.”

“Eh, at leasssst we got the red one. Wasssn’t he gripping for _hourssss_ about how the red one sssstole his ssssson’s love?” The first Venomari knelt down next to Kai. “Isss that true? Did you sssteal the green one’s love?”

The second one gave him an incredulous look. “He’sss still awake?!? I could’ve sworn I used the right…..wait….wait, no I usssed to wrong one. My bad.” He said sheepishly.

The first one rolled their eyes. “It’ssss no wonder they ssssent the two of us on this mission. The tribe tricksssster and the tribe sssscrew up. It’s as if they _wanted_ ussss to fail and kick ussss out.” They added sarcastically.

“Okay, I definitely got the right one thisss time.” The second Venomari said. Kai felt another prick, this time on his arm, and the world started quickly growing black.

“There we go! Now he’ssss definitely loosi- cons-nessss”

The world faded quicker, feeling as though cotton were being pressed on all his senses.

Hopefully Lloyd at least got back to the Bounty. It would suck if he didn’t.

* * *

When Kai woke up he was on his knees, with what seemed to be a bag covering his head. The overwhelming smell of herbs and the forest assaulted Kai’s nose, practically making his eyes water at the overpowering odor. Some sort of adhesive was keeping his mouth clamped shut and held fast when he tried to open it. Thick cuffs pinned his hands behind his back. Kai gave them a quick tug, disappointed when they barely moved a few centimeters before pulling taut.

“Hello, Kai.” Kai’s head snapped upward, eyes desperately searching behind the sack for something he couldn’t see.

Garmadon.

“I will admit, I wasn’t pleased that those useless snakes were unable to capture my son, but you are the next best thing” A warmth like nothing Kai had ever felt before got close. Far too close to his neck. It felt like the power of the Sword of Fire, but magnified a thousand fold. 

“It would be so easy to kill you right now. Slit your throat and leave your body to be found by the ninja and my brother. A warning to stand against me.”

Kai felt his breathing start to grow shallow and quicken in pace. 

He could die. He could _die_. If he died, who would help Zane with chores when he tried to put too much on his plate? Who would quadruple check Jay’s blueprints when he wasn’t looking, checking for anything too dangerous or crazy? Who would check up on Cole to make sure he wasn’t staying up too late perfecting their latest plan to stop Garmadon? 

Who would….who would watch over his little siblings? 

Who would make sure Nya didn’t feel sidelined when they went on missions? Who would stop her from creating an impossible device that could get her hurt, or worse? Who would make sure Lloyd has time to just _be a kid_? Who would let him snuggle in bed with them at night when he had nightmares?

“But,” The overwhelming power of the Mega Weapon left Kai’s throat. He let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“Lloyd would be quite devastated to learn of your death.” Garmadon took a few steps back before seeming to pace. 

“However, I can’t just imprison you. You’re much too crafty, and lord knows these snakes are no match.” Kai could’ve sworn he heard some quiet angry hissing from behind, but Garmadon didn’t seem to notice.

“Aha. I know what to do.” Garmadon took a few more steps until he seemed to be a few feet in front of Kai.

“Mega Weapon.” Oh no. Oh First Master no!

“I wish for Kai to be sent to a place where he cannot leave, but cannot die, and where he won’t pose a threat to my plans.”

Nononononononononononono-

A scalding beam hit Kai straight in the chest, making him cry out behind the gag.

Then it was gone. And so was the quiet of wherever he had been. 

The faint sounds of the city sounded below him, and the bright lights shone through the bag. Kai tried lifting his hands again, finding the chain that had kept him bolted to the floor was gone.

Kai quickly rolled over and carefully worked his cuffed hands in front of him. He practically ripped off the bag, only to be blinded by the sight before him.

Ninjago City. Or, at least he thought it was Ninjago city. It was lit with every color of the rainbow, drowning out the stars above. The buildings all around him were the size of the tallest buildings in Ninjago City, but they didn’t even come _close_ to the tower in the middle of the city.

Where in Ninjago was he?


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lloyd and Kai meet for the first time, but not under the best circumstances

Why, why,  _ why _ did he decide to walk home alone. It was a horrible idea, but Lloyd wanted to prove to the others he didn’t need constant guarding, he was their leader, he was supposed to be protecting  _ them _ -

The stone of the building bumping into his back knocked him out of his thoughts.

Oh right. He should probably be paying more attention to the fact he was being cornered in an ally.

“H-heh, c’mon. L-let’s talk this out.” Lloyd stuttered to the figure in front of him. He absolutely hated how weak he felt without his mech and gi.

The figure didn’t speak, instead pulling out a knife that shone in the moonlight. Lloyd gulped.

“Th-that’s a nice l-looking knife you have there.” He stuttered. As terrified as he was, Lloyd had to admit, it was expertly crafted. From what he could see, the handle had an elegant plant-like pattern carved into it and beautiful engravings in the blade. It was unfortunate that such a beautiful weapon was being used against him.

“You like it?” The person asked, stepping closer and holding it up. “It’s my father’s.”

Ah. Lloyd knew pretty well where this conversation was going. He should’ve just kept his mouth shut.

“Or, rather it was, before Lord Garmadon’s last attack put him in the hospital.”

Yep. There it was.

“L-look, I’m sorry, I really am, but hurting me isn’t gonna help hi-” Lloyd let out a strangled yelp as the person’s hand shot up and grabbed his throat. His hands immediately flew up to try and relieve the pressure, but it didn’t budge. Dang, this person was strong.

“Oh I know that.” The blade flashed dangerously close to his stomach. “Doesn’t mean it won’t make me feel better.”

As Lloyd started squirming away from the blade, a figure in dark red dropped from the roofs, a few feet behind the person with the knife. The person whipped around to see what had just happened, but kept their hand firmly around Lloyd’s throat.

“I’d step away if I were you.”

The stranger was wearing some sort of armor like garb, with a maroon armor piece covering his upper chest and shoulders. There were small golden designs on it, as well as some gold shoulder pads. A belt looped twice around his waist, and tucked inside seemed to be some shurikens. A ninja hood was covering a majority of his face, and there was another gold decal about where his forehead was. The cloth underneath all the armor and covering most of his body was red.

His skin was a dark brown and eyes were a goldish brown and set in a harsh glare, anger clear for anyone to see. Through the eye hole, Lloyd could make out a long scar going through his right eye.

He reminded Lloyd a lot of Kai, except the scar was in the wrong spot, and he doubted Kai could ever look so angry. Or dangerous.

The stranger with the blade didn’t seem to be as intimidated as Lloyd, as they just scoffed.

“Who are you supposed to be?” 

The stranger in red’s glare let up for a split second, briefly looking surprised, but the glare was back a fraction of a second later.

“That doesn’t matter.” They said. “I’m giving you one last chance to put down the kid and leave.”

Now it was the person with the knife’s turn to look surprised. Heck, even  _ Lloyd _ was surprised. How did this person not know who he was?

“You’re kidding right? Don’t you know who he is?!?” They exclaimed. The stranger looked unimpressed.

“Does it matter?” 

The knife stranger sputters.

“Of course it matters! Do you really think I’d just threaten any teenage boy?!?”

The red stranger looked even more unimpressed. “I mean….” He gestured to the scene before him.

The knife stranger let out a yell. “OF COURSE I WOULDN’T!” They looked ready to yell more, but instead they took a deep breath. “This  _ boy _ is the son of the warlord who keeps attacking Ninjago City. He’s Lloyd Garmadon.”

Lloyd winced a little at all the venom in the person’s voice. He was used to it, but it still hurt a small part of him

The red stranger’s eyes widened exponentially. “He’s…...but that….” the stranger trailed off, eyes darting back and forth between Lloyd and the knife stranger, then to the ground. 

The stranger looked back up, his eyes now full of hatred and threatening and rage. If Lloyd weren’t already trapped, he would’ve tried and shied away. Forget Kai, Lloyd never knew  _ anyone _ could look that angry…. Great. Now that he knew he was probably going to join in, and honestly the red stranger was much more terrifying,

“I am giving you one last chance.” He hissed, venom dripping from every word. “Leave now, or face the consequences.”

…..what? He…..he still wanted to help him? Even though he was the son of Garmdaon….maybe it was just because he wanted to be close to him. Save his son and get in the Dark Lord’s good graces….yeah. Yeah that made more sense.

The knife stranger snorted. “Oh please, what are you-”

The red stranger was a blur as he ran. In under a second, he was already descending upon the knife stranger. In the next second, the pressure was gone from Lloyd’s neck and the knife was on the other side of the alley. In the third, the now-knifeless stranger was thrown into the brick wall. In the fourth, Lloyd felt calloused but gentle hands grab his own as he was pulled out of the alley and to the fire escape. In the fifth and final second, he felt the curved roof of the building beneath him as the stranger dragged him away via the rooftop.

They ran for several minutes, and even with Lloyd’s ninja training he found it hard to keep up.

When they finally stopped, quite the distance from the alley, Lloyd was struggling for breath while the stranger didn’t even look mildly fatigued.

“Are you okay?” He asked, and Lloyd could’ve  _ sworn _ there was genuine concern in his voice.

“Y-yeah….I’m…...I’m okay.” Lloyd said between pants. “Geez, how do…..how did you run….so far with….without getting….  _ tired _ ….”

“Training.” They answered curtly. An awkward silence set in, only broken by Lloyd’s panting which gradually slowed.

“Do you….” the stranger started. Lloyd looked up at him, confused. “Do you recognize me?”

“Uhhhhhhh,” Lloyd looked at the stranger closely. Nothing seemed to stick out, especially since most of his features were hidden by his armor(?). “Can’t say that I do. Sorry?”

A flash of hurt and sadness were visible in his eyes before it was gone. “Oh.”

The silence returned again, this time even more suffocating. Lloyd started fidgeting his hands, desperately trying to think of something to say. After all, maybe this person  _ did _ actually care, and he really wanted to keep it that way.

“I suppose I’d better be going.” The red stranger suddenly said, taking a few steps toward the edge of the roof.

“Thank you.” Lloyd blurted. The strange looked back, slightly surprised. “For helping me.”

His eyes softened and it was clear he was smiling behind the mask. “It was nothing. I’m sure anyone would’ve.”

Lloyd shook his head and chuckled. “Yeah, I’m not so sure about that.”

The smile vanished and Lloyd internally panicked. Shoot, shoot, shoot, he shouldn’t have said that, he wasn’t sure what was wrong with the statement, but it was clearly not right-

The stranger walked back over to him and placed a shoulder on his shoulder. Lloyd fought back a flinch, but wasn’t completely successful. He slammed his eyes shut, waiting for the inevitable hitting or yelling.

But it never came.

After a few seconds, Lloyd hesitantly opened one eye. The stranger did seem to look angry…..instead he looked….sad. And worried.

He pulled Lloyd into a hug, tightly wrapping his arms around him in a protective embrace.

Lloyd awkwardly patted the red stranger on the back, not quite sure what to do. The only hugs he ever got were from his mom and Kai, and occasionally from the others. And well, his mom was  _ his mom _ , and Kai was his best friend. And on top of that was the feelings from this hug. It was….almost longing. Like a hug between two people who had seen the other disappear and come back a fully changed person….

The stranger pulled away, the smile back on his face. “If you ever need any help, with anything at all, just holler and I’ll be there.”

He ran back to the roof edge, but just before he jumped off, Lloyd stopped him.

“Wait!” He looked back again. “What’s your name?”

The stranger thought for a second before answering. “Call me Shogun.”

And then he jumped.

Lloyd rushed over to the edge to see where he went, but found nothing. There wasn’t a red splat on the pavement or the telltale sound of footsteps on the surrounding roofs. Just vanished.

“Woah….” Lloyd said in awe. His moment of awe was interrupted by his phone ringing.

Pulling it out, he recognized the picture as Nya’s.

“Hello?” He asked.

“LLOYD!” Nya shouted. Lloyd pulled the phone away from his ear, wincing at the loud noise.

“WHY ARE YOU ON THE ROOFTOP OF AN APARTMENT COMPLEX!!!”

“I-” Lloyd started, but then realized something. “Wait, how do you know I’m on a roof?”

“NOT IMPORTANT! EXPLAIN!” Nya demanded.

“Uhhhhhh, well you see…..”

————————

Kai was pacing in the apartment. It had been three hours since the encounter, but he had too many thoughts rushing through his head and couldn’t relax.

He needed…..he needed to get his thoughts in order. Yeah. Yeah that would probably work. Jay always said that organizing his thoughts helped, separating what he knew and what he didn’t, things he  _ needed _ to get done versus things he  _ wanted _ to get done.

First off, he knew he was in Ninjago City. All the signs, plus that  _ thug _ from earlier had all but confirmed it.

But he didn’t know why everything looked so different.

He also didn’t know why this entire apartment complex was abandoned. It wasn’t that bad and it wasn’t too far from the beach. Maybe the Garmadon attacks had something to do with it?

Well, at least it was a good place to crash. He didn’t need to pay rent, it was decently insulated, and it could work as a pretty solid home base. He just had to be careful that nobody saw him staying and to not use anything that made light near the windows. And to keep his belongings sparse, in case he needed to move in a hurry.

He looked at the small backpack of things he’d stolen. It had been years since he needed to steal, but without any cash or a job he didn’t have a choice. It hadn’t taken long to find the rhythm, but once he found it he slipped into it with ease, his ninja training definitely helping.

The backpack contained a change of civilian clothes, a toothbrush, a plastic water bottle, a water filter, and three granola bars. It was all he was able to snatch before the cashier got curious, but it was enough. For now.

He remembered seeing some help wanted signs in the window of the shop cross the street, so he’d probably need to check those out too.

Then there was….Lloyd.

Lloyd, who seemed to be Kai’s age.

Lloyd, who was almost killed in an alley and brushed it off as normal.

Lloyd, who didn’t recognize him and thought he was going to  _ hurt him _ .

The last thought made him sick to his stomach.

The look of fear in his eyes as Kai had stepped toward him, the way he flinched away…..it broke Kai’s heart. 

Was this really what had happened in his absence? Would the others really have allowed it to happen? No, no they wouldn’t. But then that would mean that something happened to them. Perhaps it was Garmadon. The person had mentioned Garmadon attacking the city, so it was definitely possible. But then who was defending it? Certainly not the police, they didn’t have nearly enough fire power. Oh no, his family was-

Calm down. Back track. Your thoughts are getting ahead of you. What do you  _ know? _

He knew almost nothing.

Kai pulled out the folded picture from the inside of his gi. It was located right above his heart, the safest possible place. If he was attacked there….. well…. losing the picture would be the least of his worries.

He’d sworn to himself the night he saved Lloyd from the volcano and revealed his destiny that he would do everything in his power to protect his little brother. It didn’t matter the danger, he would be there. He would even give his life, if need be.

Kai pulled out the change of clothes and used it to pillow his head on the hardwood floor of the apartment, tiredness finally catching up to him.

Tonight, it was time to sleep.

Tomorrow? Some reconnaissance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof, what I can say is that Kai is in for one heck of a rollercoaster. And you can’t tell me he picked up some less than legal skills from raising Nya as a kid


	3. Chapter 3

Lloyd was bolting, as fast as his little legs could carry him, jumping over rocks and ducking under branches that got in his way. Kai’s counting was slowly growing more distant, but it wasn’t gone before he heard the sounds of someone getting tackled.

He ran faster.

Lloyd felt like his heart was going to explode out of his chest. One second he was having the time of his life with Kai, the next he was telling Lloyd to run away. He didn’t know what was happening, and that scared him.

But he was the green ninja! He wasn’t supposed to be scared of anything. And he definitely wasn’t supposed to run away from a fight!

….but Kai looked really serious when he said to run. And Kai  _ never _ ran either. Only if it was really  _ really  _ dangerous. And Lloyd trusted Kai. Kai was his big brother.

Lloyd all but threw open the door to _The_ _Bounty’s_ control room and bolted over to the controls, desperately searching for the button that controlled the communications.

When he finally found it, he hit it and the computer started ringing.

“C’mon, c’mon, pick up, pick  _ up _ !” Lloyd said, bouncing from one foot to the other. Who knew how much time Kai had if he wasn’t already…

The call connected and pictures of the other three ninja, plus Nya and Wu, appeared. The ninja were riding Ultra while Nya was in her Samurai X armor with Wu sitting on the chair she added. 

“Hey guys, what’s-” Cole started talking, but Lloyd cut him off.

“Something’swrongmeandKaiwereplayingbutthenhetoldmetorunandKainevertellsmetorunandIdon’tknowwhat’swrongbutthenIheardfightingandIthinkKai’sindanger-“

“Woah, woah. Slow down, Lloyd. You’re talking faster than Jay on a caffeine rush.” Cole said, and in response, Lloyd heard Jay let out an offended “hey!”

“Kai’s in trouble!” Lloyd exclaimed.

“Wait, what!” Nya said back. “What happened?”

“I-I don’t know.” Lloyd started. “We were just play- er-  _ training _ in the woods when he told me to run as fast as I could and back here.”

“Lloyd,” Uncle Wu started. “Do you remember seeing anything strange?”

“Umm.” Lloyd thought back. Everything seemed fine, but…. “I was getting this weird feeling.”

“Weird feeling?” Jay echoed. “What kind of weird feeling?”

“Like…” Lloyd struggled to explain. “Like how when someone stares at you and you get those chills? Kinda like that...sort of.”

“Hm.” Wu said. “Cole, Jay, Zane, head back to  _ The Bounty _ . If Kai really is in danger, he’ll need help. If you need back up, call me and Nya.”

“Yes, Sensei.” The three ninja said.

“And Lloyd.” Wu continued. “Stay inside the Bounty. Do not leave until the others have arrived. You will lead them to where you and Kai were training, but, if there is any, will remain out of danger.”

Lloyd frowned. He was the green ninja! Surely he could handle it…...but then again….

Kai's face flashed again in his mind.

“Okay, Uncle.” he nodded. The call ended.

Hold on Kai. Help is on the way.

* * *

“So what are your guy’s thoughts?” Cole shouted. The wind was roaring all around the three ninja as Ultra flew over the desert. In retrospect, it probably wasn’t the best idea to park  _ The Bounty _ so far away, but there wasn’t anything they could do about it now.

“About Lloyd’s call?” Zane asked.

“Obviously.” Jay responded. “I think this might be a prank.”

“Really?” Cole looked at him with an incredulous look. “I’m not so sure. Kid looked pretty scared.

Jay shrugged. “I’m just saying, this  _ would _ be the perfect excuse to get us to help him win a game. We go in thinking someone’s in trouble, giving it our all, then  _ BAM! _ We end up winning him hide’n’seek.”

“I am inclined to disagree with that theory.” Zane spoke, drawing the other two ninja’s attention. “From what I observed, Lloyd was clearly experiencing the physical symptoms of fear and worry.”

“Well, we won’t have to wait much longer to find out.  _ The Bounty _ is right up ahead.” Cole pointed out, gesturing to the growing shape in the distance.

As soon as Ultra landed, Lloyd burst from the main room and practically jumped off the edge of the ship. Ultra just barely caught him with its tail, but the kid just jumped off from that too. At least it wasn’t as high up.

“Woah, slow down Lloyd, you’ll get hurt!” Cole exclaimed, quickly sliding down Ultra’s back to the ground, followed by Zane and Jay.

“This way!” he exclaimed, grabbing Cole’s arm and pulling him toward the forest. Even with Cole’s super strength, the kid pulled him around like a ragdoll, Jay and Zane still following. 

It didn’t take long for Lloyd to take them to where he wanted. It was practically picture-perfect, with the almost glowing green grass and the trees in almost a perfect ring. A few clusters of flowers were also scattered around, breaking up the various greens and browns with splashes of color, but most notable was the massive bush of yellow flowers with black centers. To be honest, the flowers reminded him of something, but he just couldn’t put his finger on it.

“Right here.” Lloyd stopped right in the middle of the clearing, turning around as he looked deeper into the forest.

“Lloyd, can you recall  _ exactly _ what happened before Kai told you to run?” Zane asked.

“Well,” Lloyd walked a bit to the left. “We were playing a game of kickball…” Lloyd’s eyes widened once he realized what he’d just said. “I mean-”

“It’s fine, Lloyd.” Jay said, walking over to him. “I’m pretty sure we’ve all figured out at this point that Kai spends half of his training sessions with you playing or letting you rest.”

That was true. No one could miss the excitement in Lloyd’s eyes as he was handed off to Kai for their separate training lessons. At first, everyone thought it was just that Lloyd liked Kai more(which was probably true, too), but after a while, it became clear what was actually happening. And it wasn’t like Lloyd was falling behind in training, so there was really no reason to stop it.

“Alright….” Lloyd said hesitantly. He went back to acting out what happened earlier. “I scored a goal, Kai congratulated me and ruffled my hair….then he suddenly picked me up and spun me around.”

Lloyd suddenly started spinning, before stopping. He was facing the yellow flower bush.

“When Kai was putting me down, he whispered to me ‘when I say go, run back to  _ The Bounty _ .’” Lloyd said. “He then said loudly that we should play hide’n’seek.”

“I CALLED IT!” Jay shouted. Lloyd looked confused at his sudden outburst while the other two just stared, unimpressed. The blue ninja laughed awkwardly at the staring. “Heh, sorry. Continue.”

“He then turned around, said go, and started counting. That’s when I started running...that way!” Lloyd pointed in the direction of  _ The Bounty _ .

“Hm.” Zane started examining the scene again. “Kai had full control of the direction he was facing, and if he turned around in a full 180 degrees as you say, then he would be facing….” Zane mimicked what Kai supposedly did, facing the yellow flowered bush. “Here.”

Zane ran toward the bush, gently observing the flowers.

“Some of the stems have been bent unnaturally.” Zane noted. He walked around the bush to the back. “And even more are crushed here.”

“So what does it mean?” Jay asked.

“From what I’ve gathered, if there was an enemy, then there is a very high probability they were hiding right here.” Zane crouched down behind the flowers, almost completely disappearing from view. If he were wearing greens and yellows instead of white, he would’ve been impossible to spot.

“Alright, that explains what happened.” Cole started.

“What  _ might’ve _ happened, we have no way of 100% certainty.” Zane imputed.

“Right, right. But we still don’t know where Kai  _ is _ .” Jay started pacing. Cole couldn’t help but look at where Jay’s feet were. Right in his path was a weird shiny spot, just barely standing out against the bright green grass. Cole almost snicked, imagining Jay freaking out to a sudden wet spot…until he noticed it was directly in the path of the bush.

“Jay,  _ stop moving _ .” he hissed, eyes wide. Jay froze.

“What is it?” he asked, not moving a muscle for once. Using some of the extra fabric on his gi, Cole patted the spot, soaking up the liquid.

“Zane, can you tell me what this is?” Cole asked, holding up the fabric. Zane looked long and hard and from Cole’s perspective, he could see minuscule glowing blue dots in his eyes as he analyzed it.

Zane sucked in a breath.

“Venomari venom.”

_ That’s _ what the flowers looked like. The eyes of a Venomari. And with their green and black scales, it would have blended in almost perfectly.

And the Venomari were working with  _ Garmadon _ .

This was bad. This was  _ very bad _ .

“There’s no way a single Venomri was able to take down Kai!” Jay suddenly said. It was easy to pick up on the worry in his voice. “Even if he was venomed, there’s no  _ way  _ he’d go down without a fight!”

“Guys….” Lloyd called out hesitantly. The three ninja’s gazes snapped to the younger ninja. He was a few paces behind Zane holding something in his hands.

Zane carefully grabbed it, doing the same analysis he’d done seconds before. He let out a small hum.

“I’m picking up trace amounts of venom from a snake known as the King Benumb Cobra. That species of snake is most well known for its poison, which is able to completely numb its victim’s limbs.”

Zane looked back at Lloyd. “Where did you find this, Lloyd?”

“Just in the grass.” Lloyd gestured behind him.

The ninja shared a look.

Cole placed a finger to the comm in his ear, hidden beneath the fabric of his gi.

“Sensei Wu? We might have a problem.”

* * *

Hallu wasn’t very good at most anything. He wasn’t good at hunting, his venom was pretty weak, he was  _ constantly _ mixing up his poisons, and he was pretty sure his upper left eye was slowly failing.

Yet somehow he’d caught the  _ red ninja _ . Someone even  _ Lord Garmadon _ had difficulties capturing.

“Hurry up, ssssslowpoke. I wanna get to the base before the Green Ninja alertss the otherssss.”

Right, he didn’t do it  _ completely _ on his own. He also had help from Koral.

“Why do I have to be the one to carry him?” He complained. “He’ssss heavy.”

The shorter Venomari let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of their face, just above where their nose slits were, something they seemed to pick up from either Garmadon or humans, both viable options. Koral always had a strange interest in the race that trapped them underground for years.

“Because firsssst off, you’re bigger  _ and _ ssssstronger than I am.” They pointed out. “And ssssecondly,  _ ssssomeone _ hasss to cover our trackssss.”

“Sssstill.” Hallu kicked a rogue rock in the path.

“Hallu, don’t make me pull out the eye. You know I’ll do it.” Koral threatened, lifting one hand to their eye patch.

“Okay! Okay, fine, I’ll sssstop complaining! Jusssst, please! Don’t pull out the eye!” Hallu squawked, trying to cover at least two of his eyes with his one free hand.

“Thought sssso.” Koral replied, their hand dropping back to their side.

Hallu gave them a half hearted glare. “You’re evil.”

Koral smiled. “And you’re a screw up, yet here we are.”

Hallu couldn’t help snicker a bit. Of all the members of the tribe, Koral was the only one who could call him that. It became sort of an inside joke between the two. “It’s ssssuper grosss though. Why don’t you let one of the healerssss check it out?”

Koral smirked. “Becausssse it’s awessssome. Imagine one day, I’m fighting the ninja, and BOOM! I lift my patch and they ssssee what’sss left of my eye. They get dissstracted, I take them down, and get in Acidicus’ssss good gracesss.” They paused. “Well... I guessss it’s Lord Garmadon’s gracessss now….and technically we just did.”

Hallu cast a glance at the unconscious ninja. Even asleep, he looked so….tense.

“I guessss you’re right. Huh.” Hallu said. It was kinda strange. Ever since they were hatchlings, Koral and Hallu had dreamed of being warriors, marching side by side with the General as they charged into battle, the screams of the human armies loud as they took their revenge….there was a lot less sneaking and poisoning and fighting...well,  _ children _ in those dreams. Heck, now that he was thinking about it, the Red Ninja looked barely old enough to start training in the Tribe….but then again humans probably aged differently, plus different customs.

“Hey, would’ya look at that, we’re here.” Koral pointed out. Hallu’s four eyes snapped forward and they were right. The tunnel to the temporary stronghold was right in front of them, hidden by the natural growth of the forest.

The two wordlessly walked down the tunnel, Hallu in the front, dragging the ninja by his feet, Koral in the back, making sure they weren’t followed. As the tunnel started to branch off and connect to others, they slowly passed more and more Serpentine. Mostly Constrictai, some Fangpyre, and only a handful of Hypnobrai and Venomari. Every single one of them looked at the pair and their prize with wide eyed disbelief, especially the Venomari, one of which was none other than Dendro herself. Hallu took a bit of pride at the envy in her eyes, and he was pretty sure Koral did the same.

They soon arrived at Lord Garmadon’s quarters, to which Koral volunteered to tell the good news. Good. Garmadon honestly terrified Hallu.

A loud “WHAT?!?!” Sounded from the room, causing Hallu to jump. The Dark Lord threw open the door, Megaweapon in hand. Even being a few feet away didn’t stop its power from permeating him.

Lord Garmadon stared at the unconscious ninja, his usually stoic or unhappy face wide eyed with shock. It was…..weird.

“I can handle it from here.” Lord Garmadon said, snapping out of his stupor. With one of his hands, he swiftly picked the Red Ninja up off the ground and threw him over his shoulder like a sack of herbs.

“What about ussss?” Koral asked, crossing their arms. Hallu shot them a panicked look.

Garmadon looked at Koral, who stared straight back.

“Of course.” He finally said. Hallu almost jumped. “We will discuss your reward later.”

He turned around and walked toward the lower levels, Red Ninja still unconscious.

Once Hallu was very certain Lord Garmadon was out of hearing range, he slapped Koral in the stomach. 

“What were you thinking?!?” He hissed. “You don’t just ssssay that!”

Koral crossed their arms. “Well, excusssse me for making sure we get the credit we dessserve.”

Hallu sighed. “Just….next time be more careful. Thisssss isn’t Acidicusss, or any of the other Generalsss. You have to be more careful.”

Koral waved their hands and rolled their eye. “Right, right, I know that.” A mischievous glimmer flashed. “Now, you wanna go brag to the otherssss?”

Hallu sighed again. “....yessss” he hesitantly said.

“Great!” Koral grabbed his hand and pulled him along. “And you worry too much. Besssides, maybe us capturing the Red Ninja will give usss a bit of leeway. We’ll be fine.”

“Sssomehow I think you jussst jinxed it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aight, the last bit of this chapter was supposed to just be a short little thing with Hallu and Koral, but now I’ve fallen in love with them and it went a bit longer.
> 
> And, this chronologically takes place *before* chapter 2, since in my head, Kai had been in Moviejago for about a day and a half before he met Lloyd.
> 
> And, just because, the flowers Koral was hiding in are called Black-Eyed Susans, and according the google the bushes can be pretty big. But, the snake Zane mentioned doesn’t exist, since I couldn’t find a snake that numbed someone and the poison didn’t end up killing the prey


	4. Chapter 4

Kai woke up before dawn, just like he always did, and quickly brushed his teeth, just like he always did.

He got dressed, ate a quick snack, and did some quick stretches, just like normal.

In fact, he was so in his routine, he almost forgot he wasn’t home.

Almost.

The floorboards didn’t creak the same way as  _ The Bounty _ .

_ The Bounty _ didn’t have peeling wallpaper.

_ The Bounty _ didn’t smell like old paint and dust.

_ The Bounty _ was never this quiet. There was always the sounds of Jay’s video games, or Zane cooking, or the beep-boops of Nya telling the computer what to do(she smacked him over the head with a wrench when she heard him call it that), or Cole testing new weights, or Lloyd’s footsteps as he tried to find the hidden candy stashes.

The last one sent a knife through his heart as he remembered the event of last night.

Homesickness wasn’t an entirely foreign thing to Kai. 

He felt it during his first few days at the Monastery of Spinjitzu, but it was easily squashed underneath his worry and resolve to rescue Nya. And then when Monastery was burned down, it was a little harder to ignore, but it was quickly solved when Zane came back and showed them  _ The Bounty _ .

But, both times, he had someone with him. This time, he had no one.

Kai shook his head, coming back to the present.

He didn’t have time for a pity party. He needed to help Lloyd.

Putting on the civilian clothes felt....strange. But, given he’d almost exclusively been wearing a gi for the past few months, it was expected.

The clothes were pretty simple and not too flashy. A solid grey t-shirt with a fire design right in the middle that started as red and slowly shifted to yellow then white as it got closer to the middle and a pair of blue jeans. He’d picked up a simple red zip-up hoodie, just in case, but opted to tie it around his waist. He’d also been able to get a pair of fingerless gloves, which were more to fill the empty space on his hands. Unfortunately, he’d been unable to get a pair of shoes, so he was stuck wearing his black tabi shoes. Eh, if anyone asked, he’d just say he was really into parkour(which wasn’t a lie. Going on parkour runs with the others was probably one of his favorite parts of being a ninja).

Once he was certain he looked like just another teen, he hid his supplies and gi in a hole in the ceiling, pocketed his commlink, put on his backpack, and left the apartment.

Hopefully, if the universe was feeling merciful, today would go according to plan.

* * *

The universe hated him.

Kai knew that was probably already true, especially considering everything he’d gone through in the past few days, but this was just getting ridiculous.

At first, things  _ had _ gone according to plan. He’d headed back to the ally and found that not only was the person gone(good, that probably means they weren’t too hurt or someone came and got them), but they seemed to have left the knife behind. He ended up pocketing it.

And, by the time he got to the downtown area, some stores were starting to open, and one just so happened to be the store from yesterday, so now he had a good chance of a job interview sometime tomorrow.

And, he’d also been able to spot  _ Lloyd _ (!!!) getting on a school bus, but something must’ve been wrong with it since it was leaning  _ a lot _ to the left. So, naturally, he followed it. And, since he looked like a student, people let him past since they probably assumed he’d just missed the bus.

He was able to mostly keep up with the bus the whole way to the school, and no one looked twice as he passed by.

Things were going almost perfectly and he naively thought things would stay that way.

But then things started going  _ wrong _ .

Apparently, his disguise was  _ too _ convincing. As when the first bell rang, a teacher in the halls saw him sneaking around and assumed he was trying to skip class. When he tried to explain he didn’t go to the school, she didn’t even let him finish and tried grabbing him to bring to the principal's office. He started running, but then she started chasing, and  _ boy she was fast _ .

Desperate to lose her, he ducked into a classroom, hoping she wouldn’t follow. Luckily, the teacher didn’t appear to be in the room yet, so the rowdy students didn’t seem to notice or care. Quickly scanning the room, he found there seemed to be only one empty seat, right next to a curly-headed kid with a scarf in the back. He seemed to be sketching something.

Bolting to the desk, Kai pulled up his hoodie and ducked his head, dropping the bag carefully on the floor.

The second bell sounded and the teacher entered(thankfully not the one who was chasing him).

“Hello, class.” The teacher said. The students mumbled ‘hello’s, but it was pretty quiet.

“Now, I know you’re all tired from the test last week,” Kai sensed a but.

“But, our class is behind, so we can’t take any easy days” Yep, there it was. The class let out a collective moan. Well, everyone except the kid next to him. Kai looked up a bit, now a bit more confident that the other teacher wasn’t going to come crashing in.

He had a mop of curly, brown hair that partially covered a pair of clever, dark blue eyes. Freckles were scattered on his cheeks and nose and the lower half of his face was covered by a tightly woven orange scarf. One end was tightly tucked inside while the other seemed to be fraying, almost as if someone had been picking at it. He was wearing a blue jacket with some light blue and orange triangles. He wore tan jeans and black sneakers. His backpack was decorated with colorful buttons and keychains, and there seemed to be something shiny and metallic poking out. He was sketching with practiced strokes, but from his angle, Kai couldn’t see what was being drawn.

“However!” The teacher said, snapping Kai’s gaze back to the front. “I will be allowing you to work in partner pairs for today’s work packet. And, if you finish early, you and your partner may socialize.” He then gestured to the pile of paper on the desk in the front. “Once you pick your partner, one of you will come up and get two packets. You may begin.”

All the kids started moving at once, shifting around in almost perfect sync. But the kid next to him didn’t move. He just seemed to bury himself further into his scarf.

A few seconds passed and Kai realized quickly that everyone else had found themselves a partner and were beginning the packet.

Everyone but him. And the kid.

Kai looked to the door. Now was the  _ perfect _ time to leave. Everyone was busy with the packets, this teacher would probably just think he was going to the bathroom, and the other teacher would be teaching her class. It was perfect.

But then….he looked back to the kid who was still drawing. Nobody had picked him, no one even  _ looked his way. _ Kai looked around and did a headcount. Including himself, there was an even number of students. He looked around again, and in the corner, he spied…. two groups of three?

What?

He looked back at the kid. Was this...was this normal? For the other students to just ignore him?

A rock set in Kai’s gut. He couldn’t just leave. Not yet. He didn’t know why, but he just couldn’t.

Kai looked at the clock. 8:15.

He still had time. Quite a lot of it, actually. Staying for one class wouldn’t hurt, right?

“Hey,” Kai started. The kid jumped, only now just noticing him. “I was wondering if you wanted to work together. Everyone else has a partner already.”

“O-oh.” The kid stuttered. “A-are you sure you don’t want to partner with someone else?”

Kai frowned and the kid flinched. “I-I’m mean not that I don’t want to work with you, b-but wouldn’t you rather w-work with someone else?”

Kai looked around the room, mostly for show, then back at the kid. “No. I’d rather work with you.”

The kid looked shocked and let out a small “oh.”

“I’ll go get the packets. Do you think you could push our desks together?” Kai gently asked. The kid hesitated for a second before nodding. Kai smiled.

The kid gave a tentative smile back.

But once Kai sat down and looked at the worksheet, he blanched.

_He had_ _no idea what the heck was on the paper._

It seemed to be math equations, but there were a  _ lot _ of letters sprinkled in, and well as some other things he didn’t even know the names of.

Math wasn’t supposed to have letters…. right???

Curse his limited elementary education.

Kai’s panic only rose as he heard the paper next to him turn. He looked over and  _ the kid was already done with the first sheet _ .

_ HOW?!?!? _

Kai watched with unconcealed awe as the kid’s pencil danced across the page, equations and answers appearing at lightning speed and pretty soon, he was done with the second.

It wasn’t until he was done with the fifth that he realized Kai wasn’t following along.

“O-oh, I'm going too fast, aren’t I?” He said, wilting slightly. He put his pencil down and burrowed into his scarf, averting his gaze.

“N-no you’re not, it’s just…” Kai ran his fingers through his hair and looked at the paper. “You’re really smart. Like, _really_.”

“What?” The kid whispered.

“I can barely make any sense of this, but you’re already done with the fifth page! I mean, everyone else seems to be struggling on the second or third.” Kai gestured around and was true to his word. Most of the students’ had confused or annoyed looks on their faces and their pencils were moving at a much slower speed.

Kai laughed a bit. “I’m now wondering if it would be better for you to work alone. At least then, you wouldn’t have me slowing you down.”

“No!” The kid exclaimed. Kai looked shocked, easy smile falling away. The kid, realizing his outburst, blushed and looked away.

“I-I mean…” he started twisting the end of his scarf. “I-I’ve never had anyone  _ willingly _ partner up with me before,”

Ah. So Kai’s earlier hunch was right.

“A-and I know it probably isn’t that important, but...but I like it.” He looked up. “I like working with you.”

Kai sat there stunned. This issue clearly ran a whole lot deeper than he expected.

The kid looked at Kai’s paper. “I-I could help you...if you want.” He offered.

Kai looked at his own paper, then back at the kid. “Are you sure?” He asked. Quickly realizing his wording, he continued. “I mean, like I said before, I’ll only slow you down.”

The kid nodded. “I-it’s the least I can do.” He scooted a little closer. “S-so, let’s start with the first one…”

And help he did. The kid didn’t ask questions when he had to explain variables, or negative powers, or slopes with graphing. He just broke it down into simple, easy to understand pieces and explained it. Slowly but surely, Kai was able to make his way through the worksheet. All of the groups finished much earlier than they did, but the kid didn’t seem to care that he was losing free time.

It took the entire class, but in the end, Kai was able to finish the worksheet.

The bell rang and kids started packing up, the kid and Kai included. They walked to the door together, but just as he was about to go down the hallway into the sea of students, Kai stopped him.

“Thanks. For helping me. You didn’t have to.” Kai thanked. The kid blushed.

“Y-your welcome.” He fidgeted with the scarf again. “Th-thank  _ you _ for partnering with me.”

“It was no problem…” Kai trailed off…..shoot he didn’t even know this kid’s name. “I just realized I never got your name.”

The kid looked shocked. “Oh. W-well, it’s Jay. Jay Walker.”

What.

No that was impossible.

This….this couldn’t Jay. Jay was energetic and loud, always joking or sharing his newest ideas. He would never be this quiet,  _ ever _ .

“I-is...is something wrong?” Not-Jay asked, looking a little scared.

“No, no of course not.” Kai replied, shoving down all those negative feelings. Not Real Jay or not, he helped him when he didn’t have to.

“Okay…” he sounded skeptical. “And, what’s your name?”

Kai thought for a second.

“Smith.” He finally answered. “Call me Smith.”

It wasn’t a lie, Smith was part of his name…..just not the first part.

Not-Jay gave a tiny, almost invisible smile. “W-well, I need to get going. See you later.”

“Yeah, right. See you later.” He waved. Not-Jay disappeared and Kai was left standing there, mind racing.

Jay Walker. That’s what he said his name was. And Kai  _ highly _ doubted he was lying.

This, coupled with Lloyd suddenly being older……

What. Was. Happening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another chapter? literally two days after the last chapter? It's more likely than you think
> 
> Also, I drew a picture of Hallu and Koral - https://kittydemon9000.tumblr.com/post/639775541978955778/so-i-drew-hallu-and-koral-from-my-fic-same
> 
> Also, Movie Jay is a potat with anxiety and I love him
> 
> Also, thank you Mint for helping me figure out Kai's civilian outfit and Discord friends for helping me decide Kai's fake name. Yes he has a last name, but it's not gonna be revealed til later and not til interference is made by a certain nindroid ;)
> 
> Edit: OKAY SO I JUST CHECKED MY STATITICS AND THIS IS MY MOST KUDO'D FIC AT 99 AND I HFGSHJRBFHJRBGJERF THANK Y'ALL SO MUCH


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> .....so I was checking my statistics again....and out of all my fics, this fic has the most hits, kudos, bookmarks, comments, and subscriptions.....I posted this like, half a month ago......W A T

Kai spent the next few periods scouring the school for Lloyd, this time making sure he wasn’t caught. And after a few close calls with the same teacher from earlier(jeez, she was practically a ninja herself), it was lunch and he was no closer to finding Lloyd.

So now Kai was on the roof, definitely not sulking, and eating his second granola bar.

A few students had noticed him, one even asked if he could throw down a frisbee(which he did), but other than that he was mostly undisturbed.

It kinda sucked.

Oh well, at least it wasn’t as quiet as the apartment.

“Hello!”

Kai choked on his granola and whipped around, his hands reaching for nonexistent weapons. Once he realized, he opted for fists, granola falling to the ground.

“Oh!” the kid behind him raised his hands with an exaggerated shocked look on his face. “I did not mean to surprise you.”

Kai lowered his fists and looked over the kid. His white hair was sticking straight up and was cut cleanly across the top and cut close to the scalp on the sides of his head. He was wearing a dark blue sweater vest over a light blue flannel. The vest had some white patterns that sort of looked like little monsters with blue ovals in between them. He had white jeans with a black belt and white sneakers with black bottoms. But it was his face that stood out the most. His eyes were a bit too blue, and his smile was a bit too wide….he looked a lot like Zane.

“Sorry.” Kai apologized. “You startled me.”

“That was not my intention. My apologies,” he said. “My intentions were to threaten you.”

Kai stiffened. “I’m sorry, what?”

His eyes glowed a little brighter and his smile somehow grew. “Jay is very important to me and my friends. If you are trying to get close to him in order to harm him, I’ll make you regret your actions.” His tone was cherry, but that just made it all the more threatening. He was clearly prepared to go through with his threat.

“I don’t want to hurt Jay. I just saw he didn’t have a partner, we talked, and he helped me out. That’s all”

The kid squinted at him, leaning closer. Kai leaned away, suddenly very aware of how high up they were. He wouldn’t die or break any bones, but the fall would most certainly hurt.

He suddenly stood up straight, much too fast to be human, and smiled. “You do not seem to be lying,” he said. He held out his hand. “I am Zane Julien, it is nice to meet you Smith Unknown Last Name.”

Once is happenstance. Twice is a coincidence. Thrice means either the universe is bored and decided to mess with him or  _ something’s  _ up.

Kai carefully took his hand and shook it.  _ Zane _ had a very strong grip. “Nice to meet you too…”

“What brings you to the rooftop?” Zane asked. Kai hesitated before answering.

“Well, I’m new and don’t really have a group. Jay’s the first person I’ve actually talked to, but I didn’t think it would be a good idea to ask to sit with him.” Kai carefully picked up his granola, which had luckily landed on the mostly wrapped side.

“And why not?” Zane asked. Kai shrugged.

“We just met today, and I didn’t want to impose.” Also not a lie. Jay seemed very anxious and still a little wary of him, but he also seemed like the kind of person who didn’t know how to turn someone down if directly asked.

“You’re reasoning is logical,” Zane said. An awkward silence ensued.

“So….I’m just gonna keep eating my granola.” Kai awkwardly said, going back to the ledge he was sitting on.

He sat for a few seconds and took a bite from his granola, which seemed to crunch a thousand times louder than it had before. He could practically feel Zane’s eyes on him.

Don’t look back, don’t look back, don’t look back-

A few more seconds passed before he finally looked back.

Zane was in the exact same position, not even blinking. It was much different from his Zane’s. His Zane’s stares on him were usually out of curiosity or intrigue, never out of suspicion or...whatever emotion  _ that  _ was.

“Don’t you have somewhere else to be? Or friends to hang out with?” he asked. He hoped the words didn’t come out as harsh as he worried they did. 

“I can play some music in order to relieve the awkwardness of this situation!” The nindroid plopped down next to him and started playing what Kai could only describe as an electric polka. While remaining seated, he started doing parts of “the robot.”

Kai couldn’t help but snicker. It had been such a long time since Zane had acted even remotely close to like the one before him. “You’re weird, you know that.”

Zane's face went neutral and the music cut off abruptly. “I do not know what you're talking about. I am a normal human teen. There is nothing weird about me.”

Kai made a face. That was a lie. Even if he didn’t know what Zane really was, it was clear something was off.

Unless…..wait

If this really was Zane he was dealing with, specifically a younger version…..

The realization struck him like a hammer to the face.

Crapcrapcrapcrap that was such a wrong thing to say  _ why did he  _ **_say that_ ** _ he needed to fix this- _

“You know, I have a friend kinda like you.” Kai started. Zane looked up, his blank mask hiding skepticism and a minuscule amount of curiosity. “He had a pretty bad case of amnesia for a while and spent his life trying to figure out who he was and what he was meant to do. When he found out who he actually was, he was shocked. And afraid.”

He remembered the horror and disbelief at his Zane’s realization he was a robot. 

“He looked so lost, as though this new information erased the person who he had come to be.”

_ I just don’t feel right…. _

“But, he figured it out, and became stronger because of it.” Kai looked Zane in the eyes. “Being weird isn’t bad. It just means you’re different. Everyone’s weird in their own ways.” Kai scanned the courtyard below them.

“Like that kid over there,” he pointed. “He’s playing a video game. That might be considered weird to the kid over there playing football, who might be weird to the girl talking with her friends, who might be considered weird to the kid by himself. Everyone’s different, and there is no real ‘normal.’ The world isn’t simple enough for that.”

Zane was never “normal.” And Kai loved his brother, every part of him. Even, no,  _ especially _ because of all his quirks. It’s what made Zane...well,  _ Zane. _

“The best way to live is being yourself. With all your quirks and flaws and cracked pieces, because that’s who you are.” He looked Zane in the eyes. “No one in the world can be you, so be proud of it.”

Zane, the White Ninja, Master of Ice, Master Chef, teammate, friend, brother, the voice of reason and logic,  _ nindroid _ , and protector of those who cannot protect themselves.

Zane stared back, an unreadable expression on his face. He seemed deep in thought while also struggling to find words. 

Kai internally cursed. Shoot, maybe he went a bit too philosophical on him-

“THERE YOU ARE!” Someone below exclaimed. 

Kai blanched. “Oh no…”

“GET DOWN HERE!”

“Shoot!” Kai scrambled, shoving the remains of his granola away. 

“DON’T RUN AWAY FROM ME!”

Jeez, that woman just didn’t  _ give up _ !

“Okay Zane, I gotta go! Have a good rest of lunch!” Kai picked up his backpack and bolted, leaving Zane sitting there.

* * *

Smith was an enigma to Zane. After Jay had texted them about the boy who partnered with him, they were admittedly skeptical. It wasn’t often that someone attempted to be friends with them and 100% of the time they were attempting to get close to the group so they could humiliate or cause harm.

After that  _ girl  _ (Zane refrained from using stronger language after his father did a sweep of his systems that one time) claimed she loved Lloyd, they had all been on guard and extremely cautious about people seeking “friendship.”

One of the many precautions was Zane sweeping every corner of the internet for them.

And that’s what he tried to do.

It was a piece of metaphorical cake to hack into the school security system and get clear imaging of his face and rough body type. Even easier considering he was wandering around empty halls when he should’ve been in class and wasn’t wearing his baggy jacket.

But there was nothing.

No medical records, no social media, he wasn’t even registered in the school system. Even the city security cameras only had footage of him dating back to four days ago, and the only one that stood out was of him shoplifting(only the bare essentials, however, so it didn’t seem to be something he did on a whim).

So far his leading theory was he was a creation of Garmadon’s who wanted to get close to his son, possibly to turn him to his father’s side, but the evidence to that claim was weak and shaky at best. However, it was the only explanation, other than Smith just dropping out of the sky one day.

Zane had predicted hundreds of possible outcomes when he confronted the elusive “Smith,” if that was even his real name. 

But out of all of the possibilities, getting a pep talk and life advice wasn’t one of them.

Usually, when he used his “Creepy Puppet Mode” as he heard Lloyd call it, he usually got results of their true motives almost immediately. Smith’s reaction just gave him more questions.

He was scared, his heart rate elevated slightly, but didn’t back down. He reacted when Zane said his name but didn’t treat him like everyone else. Like a freak. He reacted with familiarity, but also as one would treat a stranger. And his words, there was clearly a deeper meaning behind them and about this mystery friend.

And he seemed to know, as in, _ know know _ . Either Zane was becoming painfully obvious, or he had inside information. 

But he tried to  _ help him _ . He didn’t act like he wasn’t a person or someone who needed to be wary of. He treated him like someone who was…. just trying to figure out who he was and how he fit in the world.

The observation was frustratingly accurate and Zane didn’t know what to think about it.

“So how’d it go?” Nya asked, crouching near her motorcycle. A palate of paint was sitting next to her, as well as a variety of brushes.

“It went…..” Zane struggled for words, something he’d never experienced before. Having the entirety of the internet at his disposal left few moments such as this.

“Interestingly.” He finally settled on.

“Your thoughts?” She asked, putting down the brush. Zane thought. 

“I don’t know.”

Nya let out a quiet whistle. “Geez, he must be a  _ real puzzle _ if you can’t figure him out.”

“That’s part of it.” He said, in the back of his head replaying what Smith had said.

“Zane, are you okay?” He snapped out of his thoughts, giving a smile.

“Of course I am!” 

Nya looked skeptical, before glaring. “Did he do something to you? Because if so-”

“No, no, fear not. He didn’t harm me.” Zane said.

“But he did do  _ something _ .” Nya pointed out.

“Yes, but his intentions were not to harm me.”

“Hmmm.” Nya looked skeptical again. “Well, if we’re all going to check him out, me and Kai have next dibs.”

“Good luck!” Zane said. Nya snorted.

“Tell that to Smith. Hey, do you know when Cole’s coming back with Lloyd? I want his opinion on this.”

“Cole messaged he will be back shortly with Lloyd. He informed me another student is also at the principal's and got involved.”

Suddenly, his phone started ringing. Pulling it from his back pocket, he answered and held it up to his ear.

“Psst! Zane, are you there?” the person on the other end whispered.

“Hello, Lloyd!” Zane greeted.

“Hi, yeah, listen. I need your help.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Great job Kai, you've given him an existential crisis
> 
> And sorry is Movie Zane seems OOC, he's very hard to write but I will do my best to make it so he'll be peppier in later chapters.
> 
> But, on the other hand, he does seem like the kind of person who can go from 0 to 100 to 0 in like, five seconds


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shogun's met Lloyd, now it's Kai's turn

The hallway outside the principal’s office was a pretty familiar place to Lloyd.

There were 33 white tiles and 15 colored ones, though the 15th was just a coffee stain no one cleaned up. There were five chairs, but you never wanted to take the second one on the left. It was the most uncomfortable and had uneven legs and if you weren’t careful, you could fall off.

The secretary didn’t pay much attention to you and most of the time had headphones and would listen to music. Well…. as long as you didn’t go near her candy jar. The second you were within arms reach her eyes practically bore into your soul to make sure you honored the “Take One” rule. The ceiling fan only worked half the time but didn’t really matter since the room always seemed to be the perfect temperature.

Usually, Lloyd was alone in the principals. It was yet another incentive for the students to remain well behaved, or at least to not get caught. ‘Don’t get in trouble or else you’ll be stuck with Lloyd Garmadon!’

The door to the main hallway was suddenly thrown open and a kid was roughly thrown in, just barely able to catch himself. Meanwhile standing in the doorway was a  _ very _ angry-looking Mrs.Yamamoto.

“And you are going to  _ stay here _ until the principal decides what to do with you!” She screeched. Just as the kid turned around she slammed the door.

The kid let out an annoyed huff and grumbled something under his breath before angrily marching over to the chairs and plopping himself down on the middle one. As is, the seat  _ literally one open chair _ away from Lloyd.

Lloyd stared for a second before snapping his gaze back to the ground.

You could tell a lot about people by looking at their shoes, Lloyd had learned. Expensive tennis shoes and sneakers usually meant jock, paint splatters usually meant art student, etcetera etcetera.

But this kid seemed to be wearing black tabi, something he’d never seen before. Not even he or his team wore tabi, and especially not going to school. Maybe he did a lot of climbing? 

A few seconds passed in silence, only the occasional tapping of the secretary on the computer.

But then Lloyd felt his neck prickle. A different prickle than getting zapped with electricity, that’s for sure. It was like he could almost  _ feel _ a looming presence behind him, waiting to pounce.

But that was ridiculous, his back was to the wall and he knew there was just a hallway there, no windows or anything.

Lloyd ignored the nagging feeling for a few seconds, but quickly realized it seemed like it wasn’t going away. 

Shoot, wait, didn’t Uncle Wu mention this as part of their ninja training? Something about….stealth and observation? Specifically the observation part.

Going against almost everything he’d learned about sitting in the Principal’s hallway, Lloyd looked up.

Very slowly and very carefully, Lloyd started scanning the room, keeping his head facing forward. And just as he got to the kid, they moved. It was such a subtle shift that Lloyd hadn’t been looking he would’ve missed it.

The kid had been looking at him.

Lloyd side-eyed him for a few seconds before the kid side-eyed him back.

Shoot, they noticed.

“Uh…” Lloyd started. He awkwardly waved his hand. “Hi?”

The kid froze and stared….before his eyes softened and he lightly smiled. “Hi.”

The two just stared at each other for a second before the kid continued. 

“I’m Smith,” he introduced. “What are you here for?”

Oh. So this was the kid who partnered with Jay.

“Oh, um.” Lloyd thought for a second, trying to remember what it was this time. Nowadays he usually sat in the office, pretended to pay attention, nodded along, and just accepted the punishment. No one would believe him so what was the point?

“I think a student said I stole something, but I can’t remember what.”

Smith hummed. “So, I take it you didn’t steal the thing.” 

Lloyd stared for a second.

Did….did he actually  _ believe him? _

“What about you?” Lloyd asked after a second, trying to keep the conversation afloat.

Smith paused and cast a glance at the secretary, but seeing their headphones on continued. “I was checking out the school when that teacher caught me. I tried to outrun her, but she caught me.” He shrugged. “It’s actually kinda funny, especially since I don’t even  _ go here _ .”

“Wait, what?”

Smith chuckled. “I was in the halls when she saw me, and she wouldn’t listen when I tried to explain, so I tried to run.” He blew out a breath of air. “But  _ jeez _ , she’s fast. I ducked into a classroom to hide but ended getting stuck. She found me again during lunch, then after 5th, which leads me to now.” He gestured to the room around them.

Lloyd couldn’t help but chuckle a bit. “Mrs.Yamamoto can be  _ pretty _ dedicated.”

Smith laughed, but his face slowly shifted into an unhappy one. “Can’t say I’m looking forward to talking with the principal though. I mean, what am I even supposed to say? ‘Oh yeah, your teacher caught me sneaking around school grounds, and instead of coming clean I ran and pretended to be a student for the day. Sorry about that, and hey, do you think I’ll be allowed back?’” Smith scoffed before muttering: “First time back at a school in years and I’m going to get kicked out immediately.”

…..Lloyd didn’t quite know what to say about that.

“Lloyd Garmadon.” The door to the principal’s office opened. Lloyd sucked in a breath and stood up. He cast a look back to Smith before walking through the door.

He immediately noticed a second student inside, presumably the one who accused him. They seemed to be a senior, decently tall with a green hoodie and jeans. Short black hair framed their pale-ish face…..which now that he was looking….seemed sort of familiar….

Lloyd sucked in a breath.

_ The person from last night. _

Oh no, this wasn’t going to go well.

“Lloyd.” The Principal spoke from behind his desk, clearly tired of this same old song and dance. “Mr.Write claims you stole something of his. Do you know what it is?”

Lloyd shook his head, focusing on the spot right next to the principal's head. “No I don’t, sir.”

“Mr.Write?”

Lloyd could practically feel the smirk he was giving. “It was my father’s knife. It has a rose carved into the hilt and vine patterns along the blade. I put it in my locker this morning, but when I checked after school, it was gone.”

Lloyd was too tired for this. Most of the time students came up with at least decent accusations with a couple of scraps of evidence. This kid was just playing association. I mean, c’mon! They’re already making up stories, would it really be that hard to make them at least a little believable-

“Pardon me for interrupting, but I think I can answer that.”

Lloyd and the student whipped around to look at the voice. 

Standing there, with his front half poking into the room and a glint in his eyes, was Smith

“Excuse me, but who are you?” The principal asked, looking slightly miffed and very confused.

“Smith,” he answered, fully stepping into the room. He took a few steps until he was right in front of the desk.

He opened his backpack and reached inside….pulling out the knife.

“Is this the missing knife?”

The three sat in shocked silence.

“.....yes.” the kid mumbled.

How did he have the knife?  _ How did he have the knife? _

“Excuse me, Mr.Smith, but how exactly did you get in possession of this knife?” the principal seemed to be thinking the same thing as he eyed the weapon.

“When I was walking to the market this morning before school I saw it in an alley. Thought it would be a shame to leave such a beautiful blade to be stolen.” 

Lloyd internally grinned at the gaping holes he’d just put in the kid’s story. And casting a quick look to the side, Lloyd could see the kid knew it too.

“And  _ why _ , I must ask, did you think it would be a good idea to bring a knife on school grounds?”

“I didn’t have time to bring it home, and didn’t want to leave it somewhere where it could be stolen or damaged.”

He looked at the other student dead in the eyes.

“I honestly have no clue why it was in an alleyway.” Smith shrugged. “Do you?”

The other student froze. “....can’t say I do.”

“...I guess that clears  _ that _ up….” the principal grumbled. “Lloyd…. you’re free to go.”

Lloyd barely suppressed his smile as he nodded, standing up and grabbing his backpack.

The other kid shoved him back as he stormed out of the room, huffing about his failed scheme to get Lloyd in trouble.

But just as Lloyd closed the door, he heard a “now for  _ you. _ ”

Shoot.

Smith’s story flashed in his head and Lloyd looked back.

….he couldn’t just leave him like that.  _ Especially _ after what he just did.

Lloyd quickly pulled out his phone, fumbling and almost dropping it as he did. He scanned his(laughably small) list of contacts and clicked the one he was looking for.

“C’mon, c’mon,  _ pick up _ .” After an agonizing few seconds, Lloyd heard the telltale click of someone picking up.

“Psst! Zane, are you there?” he whispered, casting a glance at the secretary as he left the hallway.

“Hello, Lloyd!” Zane greeted.

“Hi, yeah, listen. I need your help.” He spoke a bit louder now that he was outside the room.

“What do you require?”

“Remember how Jay met that kid named Smith this morning?”

Zane paused for a second. “Yes, I met him during lunch.”

“Well, he just got me out of trouble, but now he needs help.” he heard Zane start talking, but cut him off. “I'll explain everything later, but right now I need you to register him in the school system, before he gets caught and kicked out.”

Lloyd waited for a few seconds, but there wasn’t any answer.

“Zane?”

“It’s done.” Zane suddenly said, making Lloyd slightly jump. “Smith Forge, sophomore, homeschooled his entire life. The rest of the information has been corrupted and requires it to be filled out again.”

Lloyd let out a breath of relief. “Thanks, Zane. You’re a lifesaver.”

“No problem!” he cheerfully responded. 

“Hey...Zane?” Lloyd started.

“Yes, Lloyd?”

“Could you...could you check the security cameras and tell me where Smith was this morning?”

Sure, Smith told them all, and he didn’t seem to be lying, but better safe than sorry.

“Of course.” there was a pause. “Hmm.”

“What is it?” Lloyd asked worriedly.

“I am unable to see where Smith’s place of residence is. The earliest I can see him is at 7:10 AM, where he is walking down 28th, but then he deviates into an alley. Then, he heads to the grocery store on 46th. He wanders around in no recognizable pattern, but at 7:40 AM he spots the school bus and chases after it, arriving at school 15 minutes later.”

“Wait, so he  _ ran _ the whole way to school?” Lloyd asked.

“Yes, yes he did. And from what I can tell, he doesn’t take any breaks.” 

Wow. That’s pretty impressive.

“Do you need anything else?” Zane asked.

“No, thanks Zane.” Lloyd said.

“No problem.” and then he hung up.

So Smith wasn’t lying. He  _ was _ walking to the store and he  _ did _ just find it in the alley.

Lloyd found the smile from earlier tugging at his lips.

He didn’t get detention for something he didn’t do, Smith  _ helped him _ , so far giving more evidence to his intentions and he didn’t seem to be faking it. Call him overly optimistic, but Lloyd had good feelings about Smith.

A couple of minutes later, a slightly stunned looking Smith walked out of the office. He took one look and Lloyd and chuckled.

“Why do I feel like you had something to do with that?”

“With what?” Lloyd asked innocently.

“My apologies Mr.Forge. I was unaware we were receiving a new transfer student. I understand how joining a new school can be stressful and will inform Mrs.Yamamoto of why you were wandering the halls during class. Here is your schedule and I will arrange for one of our students to show you around campus. Now, unfortunately your file seems to have been corrupted, so if you could fill it out at your earliest convenience that would be great. Have a good day.” Smith mimicked the principal and held up a small stack of papers. One seemed to be a schedule while the others were some empty forms. 

Lloyd could help but start laughing, which Smith joined in on.

“You’re lucky my dad was a blacksmith and I was able to explain why my parents named me ‘Smith Forge.’”

“Wait, really?” Lloyd couldn’t help but ask. Smith nodded. “Well, that’s convenient.”

“Sure is.”

The two walked in silence for a few seconds, Smith following Lloyd.

“Thank you.” He suddenly said. “I don’t know how you did it so fast, but thanks. It means a lot to me.”

Lloyd smiled back. “I could say the same to you. You saved me from who knows how many detentions.”

Once Lloyd was convicted, it was pretty hard, almost impossible really, to get out of trouble. The fact someone other than his friends or mom went out of their way to help him….it felt nice.

When they arrived in the parking lot, Lloyd spotted Cole leaning on one of the buildings, headphones in and nodding along to some music.

“See you tomorrow?” Smith asked. 

Lloyd smiled. “Yeah. See you tomorrow.”

Smith waved and walked into the crowded streets as Lloyd walked in the opposite direction toward Cole.

“So. How’d it go?” He asked, noticing Lloyd’s grin.

Lloyd cast a last glance at the crowd, but Smith was gone.

“It went amazing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hrrrrrrrrrrr sorry this chapter took so long it was for some reason just so hard to write. Tbh, I'm still not that happy with it, but it progresses the plot and characters, which is all it needs to do.
> 
> Also, this story apparently has over a thousand hits and 150+ kudos???? Thank you all!!!! So much! I didn't think people would it this much, but I was very very wrong


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know what, it’s been a bit too fluffy. Have a nice piece of hurt :D

Despite everything that had happened the previous day, Kai was actually looking forward to going to school again. Granted, he was a little worried since, again, elementary limited education, but if his hunch was correct about Zane being the one who made his schedule, he should be okay.

His interview went off without a hitch, and now all he had to do was wait for a response, but until then it was stealing granola bars and other unnoticeable foods from the various stores around. Kai needed to be careful not to steal from the same store twice, in order to avoid suspicion.

And running to school was actually pretty fun, now that he knew where he was going. 

Today his first class was PE, which was awesome and would hopefully be a decent substitute for morning training. After that was a short break, then he needed to go to English, which he wasn’t looking forward to. Then there was something called “Tutorial” followed by lunch, then History, which Kai was a little worried for.

But, all in all, it seemed like today would be pretty good.

“Hey there, new kid! I’m Chen, the head cheerleader, and I’ll be showing you around!”

…...well there goes his good mood.

He looked like he came straight out of one of those cheesy high school movies Jay forced him to watch, with his perfectly combed brown hair and light blue varsity jacket with a yellow “NH” emblazoned on the upper left. He was wearing a pair of light blue jeans and very expensive looking sneakers.

Kai couldn’t explain it, but something about Chen seemed so….punchable.

“As an apology for the shenanigans yesterday, the principal said that you get the day off, sort of, and that I’m supposed to show you your classes and other places you’ll need to know here at our amazing school!” He gave a wide smile and a quick wink.

Kai gave a quiet nod.

“C’mon!” Chen gestured for him to follow and started walking. Kai let out a sigh and did so.

He really didn’t want to hang out with this kid, _but_ it would be good to get a proper tour of the school.

Hopefully, crossing his fingers, this could be over with soon and he could go back to protecting Lloyd and figuring out what was happening.

* * *

Nya liked to think she was a decently reasonable person.

Overprotective? Yes. Reckless and a bit of an adrenaline junkie? Absolutely. But, at least decently reasonable. You didn’t get to be a member of the Secret Ninja Force by brute strength alone, you needed to be smart.

And right now that reasonability was telling her to absolutely _throttle_ Smith.

Hearing Jay’s, and then Lloyd’s, story about Smith, she was the first to be suspicious. And right now, she was pretty right about her hunch.

She remembered coming to school, getting ready to give her version of the Friend Test when she’d seen him following Chen of all people, who seemed to be pretty friendly with him.

Yeah, _no_. Any friend of Chen was an enemy of Lloyd, and by extension an enemy of them all.

She luckily was able to slip away from math and had about 10 minutes before the teacher got too suspicious. Currently, with Zane’s help, she was scanning the halls.

He was the only one currently in on the situation, besides Cole and Kai, but they were stuck in class. No one wanted to be the ones to tell Jay and Lloyd, but they were making plans to do it after school. 

‘ _If you take a left he should be there._ ’ Read the text. She started speed walking a bit faster to where the hallway turned and-

_There he was_.

He was standing right outside the boy’s bathroom by himself. He was presumably waiting for Chen. Good.

Not that Nya wouldn’t have done it with Chen there, oh no. She would’ve loved nothing more to tear him a new one, but today her target was Smith.

“Hey!” 

His head snapped up immediately and looked at her. His expression briefly went to defensive before calming down into something more blank.

She bolted over to him and harshly poked his chest “I don’t care who you think you are or what you’re planning, but I’m never going to let you hurt them, got it!?!” She exclaimed.

Smith looked confused. “What are you talking about?”

Nya’s frown grew. So he was playing dumb then? Fine.

She crossed her arms. “Oh, I don’t know, maybe about how you’re leading on Jay and Lloyd?”

Smith now looked offended and something verging on angry. Good. More emotions made it easier to get confessions, especially accidental ones.

“Why would you say that?” He demanded, also crossing his arms and glaring right back.

Nya did have to give this kid something, he had guts.

“Hmmm, I'm not sure, maybe because of how you’re hanging out with _Chen_?!?”

Smith looked confused for a split second but it was drowned underneath the angry look in his eyes.

“What does that have to do with anything?” He asked. Nya opened her mouth to answer, but he interrupted her. “Listen, I don’t even know who the heck you are, so why don’t you leave me alone. I’m already in a bad enough mood.”

Oh and if that didn’t get Nya’s blood _boiling_ . Yeah, no she was not about to stop because he _didn’t feel like it_.

“Name’s Nya Smith.” She spat. “Don’t forget it.”

_That_ got his attention. His gaze snapped up, anger completely gone and now just shock remaining.

“What.” He practically whispered. She didn’t let up her glare and instead uncrossed her arms.

“You heard me. Now honestly, I could care less with what you do.” She took a step closer. “But if you try to hurt _my friends_ ? I will make. You. _Pay_.” She hissed. “Got it?”

Before he could even respond, she pivoted on her heel and marched back in the direction of her class. Once she rounded the corner, she pulled out her phone and shot a text to Zane.

‘ _Thanks for the help, found him and gave him the message_ ’

Nya smiled a bit, but also hurt a bit. Contrary to popular belief, she didn’t like having to always be defensive and suspicious of other students. But, she was the Water Ninja. She was fluid and could be whatever her team needed her to be. And if they needed a protector, then who was she to deny them that.

Hopefully, just like all the others, Smith would back off and the danger would pass.

* * *

Kai couldn’t help but stare at where….where _Nya_ stomped off to. 

He never seen her that angry before, and especially not directed at himself. But, he reminded himself, that wasn’t his Nya.

But at the same time….

“Sorry bout that!” Chen cheerfully said, walking out of the bathroom. “But when you gotta go, you go. Let’s continue the tour!”

Just just as Chen was about to go, Kai stopped him.

“Wait.” He said. Chen looked slightly surprised and gave that stupid smirk of his.

“He speaks! I was beginning to think you didn't know how.”

Ignoring the comment, Kai continued. “I was wonder about….about Lloyd and his friends.”

The effect of the name was instantaneous. His smirk changed to a harsh frown and his eyes narrowed into a glare.

“Oh, you mean the _dork squad_.” The venom in his voice was obvious to spot.

This…..didn’t give Kai good feelings.

“What….what do you mean?” He hesitantly asked.

“Ugh, Lloyd is the _worst_ ! His dad is _always_ attacking the city and destroying stuff. Just last week he destroyed the most popular coffee shop and it’s still under construction.” Chen complained. “And his friends are even _worse_. Jay’s a scaredy-cat cat and a smart alec, Zane’s a creepy weirdo, Cole always acts like he’s better than everyone else, Nya’s trying way too hard to be ‘cool’ and K…..hey you okay? You’re looking kinda pale.”

With every word, the pieces started falling into place.

He needed to get away. _Now_.

“‘M feeling a little dizzy. I think I’m gonna head to the nurse. I can get there myself.” He lied. Chen nodded, but then a dark smile started growing on his face.

“You know….after school today me and a couple of my friends were gonna play a bit of a _prank_. If you want in, meet me on the roof when the last bell rings, got it?”

Kai numbly nodded. He needed to go, he needed to go _now_.

Chen placed a hand on his shoulder and Kai fought every muscle to not flinch or flip him. 

“You’re a really cool kid, Smith. Can’t _wait_ to see you at the top.”

And then Chen turned around and left, leaving Kai standing numbly in the hallway, his words echoing in his mind.

The words were bouncing around in his head, along with what….Nya said. The evidence was so glaringly obvious how could he _miss it_ he was a _ninja it was all just so-_

“AAAAAAARGGG!”

Kai punched the wall in rage, the rough stone not even budging which only served to fuel his anger. So he punched it again. And again. And again and again and again.

In the end, it was his anger that gave out before his arms. Good thing, too. He didn’t have the supplies to fix himself up if he accidentally got injured.

Kai turned around and let his back slide down the wall, letting out a long, tired sigh, thankful that it was the middle of 4th period and he was at a less populated part of the school. Hopefully, there was a pretty good chance no one heard.

He felt so…..just so freaking _tired_. Tired of all the insanity, of all the craziness that couldn’t even be called that anymore given how much it happened.

He’d just wanted to spend some time with his baby brother, to give him a nice break after all the pressure being put on him, and for his troubles, he got drugged, captured, and sent seemingly to another timeline/universe/realm/ _whatever_.

He…..he missed home. He missed _The Bounty_ and training before dawn. He missed the little things like Zane’s cooking and Jay’s inventing and Cole’s planning. Wu’s cryptic teachings and Lloyd’s pranks and Nya’s…..Nya’s everything. He missed his family _so badly_ and they were _right in front of him_ ….but at the same time, they seemed to be so far out of reach.

_I don’t care who you think you are or what you’re planning, but I’m never going to let you hurt them, got it!?!_

Her words hurt him so badly, so much more than she probably realized. He never _ever_ wanted to hurt them, especially Lloyd. He’d rather die than let that happen.

But clearly, he wasn’t trying hard enough, he wasn’t _good_ enough.

A familiar burning went to Kai’s eyes and he cursed, wiping away tears before they could spill.

He was better than this. He was a fully trained ninja. He’d gotten shot at, fallen off buildings, burned himself, and received more than his fair share of injuries, yet it was a few words of someone he(technically) barely knew that brought him so close to tears?

He took a deep breath. He felt the familiarity of the emotion shrinking until it was manageable, then carefully pushing it under.

He didn’t have time to deal with those emotions, he’d do it later. When exactly, he wasn’t sure, but right now he needed to make amends and fix this….somehow.

He never was a very good planner. That was always Cole and Nya’s thing.

But they weren’t here right now. He was all…. alone.

Kai brought his knees to his chest and buried his head in them.

He…..he didn’t know what to do. He was…..well, he was basically useless.

Useless…..just like when Nya was kidnapped, and later when Lloyd was.

Tucking his limbs in closer, Kai felt as though the world felt much heavier and the air much much thinner.

He couldn’t….he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t breathe in, he couldn’t breathe out, the world was so quiet, way too quiet, he needed some noise, something, _anything_ -

Out of nowhere, the sounds of fast footsteps burst through his bubble and Kai shot up with the start.

“Hey there, I’m…..are you okay?”

Kai looked around, trying to find the source of the voice, before finally locating it.

It was a boy, looking around his age peeking around the edge of the hallway corner. He had a white undershirt and a bright red zip-up jacket. He also had a long scar cutting through his right eye and a small white bandage above his left. His hair was spiked up, looking like some mix between a bunch of bananas and fire.

You know, now that Kai was paying attention to the details, he looked pretty similar to…..

Oh.

Oh no.

This…….This was going to be interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot express how hard it was to write this chapter, BUT I DID IT. I’m not joking when I say I wrote almost all of it today and yesterday.
> 
> Also, thank you all sososososososososossoSO much to the 200 kudos ;D


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Clash of Kai's? More like Comfort

Kai was just wandering around the school grounds. Well, maybe not wandering. He was speed walking, but didn’t really have a destination planned. According to the group chat Nya had made with him, Zane and Cole she was planning on confronting Smith, and he wanted to be a part of it. Partially to make sure Nya didn’t go too far, but also just in case he needed to keep his sister safe.

But, he couldn’t exactly ask Zane for help, since a) he was helping Nya, and b) they didn’t know he was coming. If they found out, they would just send him back to his class since “they could handle it.”

And while he trusted them with his life, it wouldn’t hurt to have someone play peacekeeper.

So yeah, he was wandering around the school when he suddenly heard someone yell. And it wasn’t a pained one, or scared. It was one of anger. Anger and frustration.

That...wasn’t promising.

He picked up the pace a bit, tracking it down to a pretty secluded part of the school by following the partly quiet thuds that Kai recognized as someone punching a hard surface, usually a wall.

Taking a deep breath, he poked his head around the corner.

“Hey there, I’m…” He started, trailing off as he got at a good look at the kid. He seemed to be Kai’s age and had really unruly, spiked brown hair and a long scar cutting through his left eye.

From the pictures Zane had shown them yesterday, he could easily see it was Smith.

Smith, who was sitting on the floor, slightly curled in on himself with his back to the wall, eyes glistening with unshed tears and breathing in an uneven pattern.

“Are you okay?” He asked him.

Smith stared at him, looking confused and….Kai wouldn’t say afraid but slightly adverse to him.

Suddenly, his breathing started picking up again and Kai found himself kneeling right by his side.

“Hey, hey. Look at me.” He gently started. “You need to breathe, okay? In and out, like this.”

He carefully touched him and, once it was clear he wasn’t adverse to the touch, carefully grabbed Smith’s hand and placed it on his own chest.

“In. And out.” He repeated the motion for almost a minute as Smith’s breath slowly evened out and became less erratic.

“Are you okay?” Kai asked again. He knew it was a stupid question, having a panic attack in a hallway was never a good sign, but it helped to hear it from the person themself.

“I….” he started, eyes darting around as he searched for an answer. “Who are you?”

Kai gave a gentle smile. “Call me Kai. You’re Smith, right?”

“I’m...I’m…..” he clearly looked hesitant and….almost a little lost. Finally, he nodded.

“Alright.” Kai said. “I’m not gonna pry, but is it okay if I sit here with you?”

The kid carefully nodded, seemingly calmer with that question, relaxed and slumped against the wall. Kai carefully let go of his hand and sat next to him.

Neither of them spoke, just sitting in calm silence.

Kai quickly cast a glance at his watch, eyes widening. 4th period ended in a minute.

He then cast a glance at Smith. His eyes had that distant look to them.

“Hey,” he carefully started. Smith snapped back to reality and looked at him. “4th period’s gonna end soon. The halls are gonna fill soon, but I know a quiet place we can stay until you’re ready to leave. What do you think?”

He thought for a second.

“Okay.” His voice was rough, but clear.

“Great.”

Kai carefully grabbed his hands and pulled him to his feet, giving Smith a moment to balance himself before starting to carefully pull him down the hallway. He went at a brisk pace, but made sure he was going slow enough to be sure Smith wouldn’t need to run or jog to keep up.

At some point, he heard the bell ring and students started pouring out of the classrooms. He held Smith’s hand a bit tighter. Didn’t want to lose him to the crowds after all.

He seemed to understand and held on tighter too.

Pretty soon they arrived at their destination. The crowds were much thinner here, with most of the students already in class and the ones remaining running to try and make it on time.

“Hey Mr.Walker!” Kai greeted as he opened the door.

The older man was sorting through papers on his desk, but looked up with a smile.

“Hello there Kai. How have you been?” he cheerfully greeted, putting down the pen. Kai smiled. Mr.Walker’s cheerful demeanor never got old.

“Pretty good,” he answered. Kai gestured to Smith behind him. “Is it okay if we stay during tutorial?” 

Mr.Walker looked him over and Kai recognized him noticing the signs. “Of course. In fact, let me warm up some hot coco. You look like you might need it.”

Smith blushed a little. “Oh, that really isn’t necessary-” he started, but Mr.Walker waved him off.

“Oh, it’s nothing. I was going to get some for myself anyway.” Mr.Walker stood up and moved to the small empty room attached to the classroom. No one really knew why it was there, but Mr.Walker turned it into a sort of tiny comfort storage room with blankets and snacks.

Kai noticed Smith staring at Mr.Walker as he left, but Kai mostly chalked it up to shock at his kindness. Kai sure was the first couple of times.

“While he’s setting up, why don’t we get settled.”

The classroom itself was pretty empty and clean with all the desks lined up in the usual way. There was a small stack of scrap paper in the back and a few drawings and little metal things students had made over the years, but other than that the room was mostly empty. Which made sense since all of the actual metal work was done in another classroom.

As the two sat down, Kai couldn’t help but notice Smith staring at him.

It was awkwardly silent for a few seconds, neither knowing quite what to say.

“So uh,” Kai started, trying his best to ignore the embarrassment at how awkward it was getting. He cleared his throat. “I heard you were hanging out with Chen this morning,” Smith scowled. “If you don’t mind me asking,  _ why _ ?”

Smith let out a frustrated sigh. “I was just walking to school when I was stopped by  _ him _ . Apparently, the principal wanted him to show me around the school. That’s  _ it _ .”

Kai’s brain stopped for a second.

“So you…. _ weren’t _ hanging out with him willingly?”

Smith looked almost offended at the suggestion. 

Oh no.

“Of course not.” he scoffed. “For one thing, he wouldn’t. Stop. Talking. And not in a way like explaining things. He just kept bragging about his accomplishments and occasionally pointed out classrooms.”

Oh boy.

“So, um.” Kai started. “Did he….how do you feel about him?”

Smith  _ growled _ .

“He’s a slimy, judgemental, plastic, antagonistic, arrogant, sON OF A-” with each word he was growing more and more angry until he was practically yelling.

“Woah, woah.” Kai said, trying to calm him down. Smith looked like he was about to punch the table. That was definitely one of the more…..aggressive reactions he’d seen, right up there next to Nya’s.

“It’s just….” He continued, the anger from his voice abruptly dissipating. “ _ All _ of the signs were there. And I was too stupid to see them. And now Nya hates me, Zane doesn’t trust me, and whatever trust I may have built up with Jay and Lloyd is as good as gone.”

He set his head on the desk, looking thoroughly defeated.

“I just wish for at least  _ one day _ , things could go as I need them to. 24 hours is all I’m asking. Then, the universe can do whatever it wants.”

Kai stared in shock. Something about this felt so familiar….

The answer hit him like a bolt of lightning.

Lloyd.

Specifically, the day Harumi dumped and publicly humiliated him after it was clear he had no connection to Garmadon.

Lloyd had looked so small and defeated and endlessly  _ tired _ . More tired than when they had to pull  _ two _ all nighters in a row. Much too tired for a kid barely out of middle school.

And he was seeing that exact same exhaustion on Smith.

Then he had another horrible realization.

They’d all treated Smith just like everyone had treated them. With fear, and suspicion and no small amount of hostility on Nya’s part.

Everyone but Jay, Lloyd, and  _ maybe _ Cole, but they hadn’t properly met yet, so who’s to say.

It felt…..bad. It made him feel icky and gooey on the inside, like black sludge was pooling in his stomach. It made him sick.

“....You’re not from around here, are you?” He eventually said. Smith let out a groan.

“Is it that obvious?” He asked, slightly tilting his head to Kai could see the corner of his eye.

“Eh, you could say that.” Kai shrugged. “So, if you’re not from Ninjago City, where  _ are _ you from?”

Smith hesitated, clearly thinking about his answer.

“I’m from...a small town you’ve probably never heard of. I grew up there with my little sister, but we’ve moved around a bit in the past few months.”

“Really?” Kai asked, happy the conversation was going in a seemingly positive direction. “Where to?”

Kai would’ve  _ sworn _ he saw Smith smile a bit.

“Well, after my sister ran into some trouble, this old guy came by and offered to teach me how to protect her, and doing it, I met my brothers. Not biological, but no less important and no less my family. Can’t imagine what I’d do without them.”

Kai knew what that was like. If something happened to the others he didn’t know  _ what _ he would do.

“What are they like?”

Smith thought for a second.

“Well…...first there’s Brook. He’s super strong and is sort of our leader, in a sense. He’s the oldest and is our rock. He keeps us stable.” Smith started, a fond smile growing on his face. 

“Then, there’s Julien. He’s the smartest and is pretty much our voice of reason. He’s pretty chill and a  _ really _ amazing cook. He had a pretty bad case of amnesia for a while, but later got his memories back when he found his childhood home.

“Next, we have Gordon. He loves inventing things and  _ loves _ to talk. He’s also pretty good at video games.”

His smile faltered a little bit but he continued. “My sister...Phoenix is also really good at inventing. She made herself her own mech suit from scratch!” Smith puffed out his chest a bit with pride.

“How old is she?” Kai couldn’t help but ask.

“Thirteen.”

Kai stared. That was….that  _ was _ pretty impressive. It took all six of them to build their mechs and even with Lloyd’s Master Building it took them a couple weeks  _ with _ Sensei Wu’s help. The fact she did it alone….it was pretty cool.

Smith chuckled. “Yeah, that’s how we reacted too. In fact, we didn’t even know she had made it until a few weeks after.”

Smith’s smile fell a bit more. “Then….there’s Montgomery, Monty for short. He’s….boy where do I even begin. He used to be this kid who was always just giving us problems. Causing trouble in the nearby villages, stealing things, generally just being a nuisance. But then….one day the old guy I mentioned brought him aboard our ship, and we started seeing him. The  _ real _ Monty.”

Smith let out a tired sigh. “I miss them. A lot.”

Kai looked at him with concern.

“It….it wasn’t just what Nya said that caused me to freak out.” he said, and Kai wasn’t sure if he should feel relieved or not. “It was just….what made everything crash down.”

He looked Kai in the eyes. “I don’t want to hurt Lloyd. Or Jay, or Zane or any of you.”

Kai stared back. “I believe you.” And he fully meant it, whether Smith believed it or not. 

Smith didn’t get a chance to respond, since Mr.Walker suddenly came back into the room, three mugs of hot chocolate balancing in his hands. 

The first one was a chipped lime green one with little painted gear patterns and “wurlds bestest dad” on it. Jay had made it for him on Father’s Day back when he was really young and Mr.Walker seemed to alway use it. His second mug was a soft pinkish-orange with flower petals and a campfire, which was Kai’s “assigned” mug. And the last one...was a soft brown one with red shading at the top and a strange dragon-looking emblem on one side.

No…..no way.

“Guess who’s got cocoa!” he exclaimed. From his spot, Kai could make out a small bit of whipped cream and some marshmallows poking out the top.

“Thank you, Mr.Walker.” Smith thanked, taking the brown mug from him. His eyes seemed to linger on the pattern before he gave it a sip. His eyes widened and he looked at it, just staring….until he took another, much longer, sip.

Kai couldn’t help but chuckle a bit, but quickly sobered.

“Hey, uh, I need to call the others and tell them where I am. I’ll be right back.” he told Smith, who nodded, looking absolutely enraptured by his hot cocoa.

Kai carefully stepped out of the class and pulled out his phone and called the first contact. It barely rang for a second before it was answered.

“Kai! Where are you, we’ve been waiting forever and-”

“Nya, you messed up. We all did.” he bluntly said. No use in tiptoeing around it.

“What do you mean?” 

“Smith.” he said. 

“Explain.”

“He wasn’t  _ willingly _ hanging out with Chen.” Kai started. “The principal just had him showing him around.”

“And how do you know he wasn’t lying?” she asked back. Kai suppressed a groan.

“Because he had the same look Lloyd did when  _ that _ happened.  _ And _ I found him on the verge of a panic attack in the hallway.” The words were a bit more pointed than he anticipated, but sometimes Nya could be stubborn. In some cases, it could be good. But in others, not so much.

She was quiet for a few seconds, before a dull thump echoed on her end.

“Oh no.” he heard her mumble.

“Yeah, oh no.” he repeated.

“And I’m guessing you brought him to Mr.Walker?”

“Yep. He gave him the brown mug with the dragon.”

He heard her curse, and rightfully so. The Mug System was the  _ ultimate _ judge of character from Mr.Walker. Even the most stoic of people weren’t immune to the results of the test. It was as if the metal shop teacher would see people’s souls to give them the right mug.

None of them had figured out the system, not even Jay, but what they did know was that the brown mug with the weird dragon was a  _ very _ special mug. Whenever they asked Mr.Walker he always just said “I’m waiting for someone special for that one. It’s strange and different from the others, but strong. It needs someone like that.”

“You need to apologize.” He continued. “I’m not sure exactly what you said, but it seemed to hit him really close to the heart.”

“I’m on my way, Zane too.” Kai let out a small breath of relief. At least that would soon be out of the way.

“Alright, I’ll see you so-“

Out of nowhere, a loud alarm started blaring throughout the school.

Kai paled.

The Garmadon Alarm.

“HELLOOOOO NINJAGO CIT-AY!!!!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :DDDDDDDD this chapter. was. interesting to write.
> 
> To anyone who doesn't know what tutorial is, it's basically a period of time before or after 3rd/4th period in which the students can go to any class of their choosing. My old school also called it Flex, so maybe that's the name y'all are familiar with.
> 
> And a little note with Ed, no he doesn't know Kai/Smith's secret nor his identity. My grandma and some other people I know have these massive mug collections and about 90% of them don't match/have unique patterns and I'm projecting that onto Ed. He seems like the kind of guy who has massive collections of s t u f f, and one of those collections is mugs because why not


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kai's had enough time to shine, it's Shogun's turn baybeeeeee

Kai almost dropped the mug Mr.Walker(or, Ed technically, but he wasn't that familiar with “this one” and it could help to differentiate the two) had given him as he jumped up from his seat. The heavenly liquid sloshed around precariously underneath the fluffy white deliciousness, but luckily he had drank enough that it didn’t spill.

The alarm was very loud, very annoying, and _very much_ noticeable.

Mr.Walker quickly, but carefully, grabbed the mugs(including his own) and rushed back into the closet. A second later he came back out, but then grabbed the papers he was correcting and bolted back to the closet.

He was just about to close the door when he saw Kai just standing there.

“What are you waiting for?!? Quickly, inside!” Mr.Walked exclaimed, his gentle tone from earlier suddenly much more urgent and slightly panicked.

“Wait, what’s happening?!?” Kai demanded. “What’s that alarm?!?”

Mr.Walker looked shocked for a brief second. “It’s the Garmadon Alarm. He’s attacking the city!”

A chill went through Kai, remembering his last encounter with the warlord.

But then he realized.

“Wait, what about Kai!?!” It felt slightly strange referring to someone of the same name, but the urgency was still the same.

He had no idea of the ninja status of the others. _Especially_ given how hated Lloyd seemed to be. If anything, it was more likely they were considered “dangerous vigilantes” or something horrible like that!

Not waiting for Mr.Walker to answer, Kai bolted into the hallway, looking around frantically. 

The other him was nowhere to be seen.

Oh nonononononononono.

Kai started bolting through the halls, desperately looking for any sign of the boy. He’d only known him for less than an hour, but Garmadon was no joke, and going off on his own would be…..very, very bad.

Just as he reached one of the windows, a blazing light caught his eye.

Stopping to look, Kai sucked in a breath.

Mechs. Thousands, upon thousands of mechs had descended upon the city, all of which were strangely aquatic themed.

It was...Kai couldn’t emphasize _just how many_ there were. Sure he and his team had fought the Skulkin and later the Serpentine under Garmadon’s command, but even _combined_ that was only a few hundred. Here….there were just so many more.

_How was the city not under Garmadon’s control yet?!?_

Steeling himself, Kai bolted out of the school.

He needed to help.

_But he couldn't draw attention to himself._

He needed his gi.

_But that was in his apartment._

Then he would run and get it.

From the front of the school, Kai could see a sea of people running toward buildings, crowding the streets as they tried to get to safety. So the streets weren’t an option.

His eyes slowly drifted to the buildings. Many seemed to have curved roofs, but even more were flat, _and_ he was able to spot a fire escape nearby.

Bingo.

Slipping his way through the crowds, he quickly scaled the building and started bolting across the top. 

The hard rock thumped under his feet and the wind blew through his hair. The familiar rush of adrenaline filled his veins as mechs of all shapes and sizes were swarming all around, shooting at cars and buildings and _people_ with lasers that seemed straight out of an action movie. Those that weren’t piloting mechs wielded guns, grappling hooks, serrated swords, bombs, harpoons, and spears, also weirdly aquatic themed. Now that Kai was closer to the center of the damage, there seemed to be even _more_ enemies, with the streets practically flooded with the attackers and their destruction.

Kai made a mental note to thank Wu for all the harsh training. While it wasn’t fun at the time, it was _definitely_ coming in handy. Even with the adrenaline, he doubted he could run this far without it.

As much as it pained him, Kai didn’t let himself stop to deal with the attackers. Usually, he wouldn’t have cared less, almost everyone in Ninjago knew who they were…..but this wasn’t his Ninjago. He didn’t know the people here, and they didn’t know him

He didn’t know if he could trust them.

Kai’s eyes widened when he finally spotted his apartment complex….and even more robots. Great.

Out of nowhere, a giant mech landed on the building. Kai skidded to a stop, just barely stopping and jumping back as it jumped in front of him. It let out a loud, metallic roar, its teeth flashing in the sun.

Its body was an oval shape with rows of razor sharp teeth that cut through the middle. A pair of “eyes” were positioned on the sides of it, along with a pair of fins, but they seemed mostly for aesthetic purposes rather than serving any purpose. A pair of tiny feet were keeping the mech up, and Kai couldn’t help but wonder how they were able to support its weight, let alone jump up what he guessed was 15 stories.

There was also a small missile holder on its underside, but it was thankfully empty(small mercies).

In all honesty, the thing looked like a windup toy, just _much_ bigger and much more dangerous.

But it seemed the mech wasn’t his only new friend. 

A group of enemies clambered onto the roof, one even carefully landing from the sky with what looked like a jetpack disguised as an oxygen tank.

Kai was able to count six, which seemed like pretty good odds, but then he remembered the mech and that he didn’t have any weapons.

“What’re you going up ‘er, kid? Dontcha know the roofs are for ninja _only_?” One of them demanded. 

He was wearing a helmet that seemed to mimic a shark, with his head poking through the mouth hole and fake teeth framing his face. But despite how ridiculous and childish the headpiece looked, the rest of the outfit Kai couldn’t help but admire. It was smooth and perfectly cut, not sagging anywhere, and was a shiny dark blue. It reminded Kai of some of the older suits he’d seen generals wearing in the history books. His chest was even decorated with a variety of ocean-themed medals and gold pieces, ranging from miniature anchors to starfish.

Well, if there was one thing Kai had to give this Garmadon(was that right??? He was still pretty confused about how this was working), he definitely had good taste.

Anyway, back to the enemy.

Looking over his face, he seemed almost...offended?

“Gonna ask you one more time, kid!” he exclaimed, drawing a serrated sword out of seemingly nowhere. “What. Are you doin’. On. The roof.”

The others seemed to follow his lead, drawing their own weapons. Kai was able to count a total of two swords, a grapple, a spear, a trident, and throwing stars that looked like starfish(again with the ocean theme). Luckily, none of them seemed to have guns.

“Decided it was the fastest way to get home.” he answered finally. He’d probably want to take down the swords first. He’d feel much more comfortable with weapons. Then he’d probably need to take down Spear and Trident. Grapple could be used to knock over the mech, but he needed to keep a close eye on Starfish, maybe try and grab their jetpack once this was all over.

“What ‘r you, crazy?” Sharkhead exclaimed.

“Nope.” Kai responded, popping the ‘p’ “Just new in town.”

And then he jumped into action.

Sharkhead hesitated in surprise, and that was long enough. Kai was immediately on him, throwing punches and dodging slashes. It took a few seconds before the others decided to join in, but it was more than enough time for Kai to disarm Sharkhead and take the sword as his own.

It was pretty well balanced and seemed to be made of a good, powerful metal. _Wow_ , this Garmadon really stepped up with supplying his minions with decent weapons.

Spear and Trident tried to rush him, weapons poised forward, but Kai easily redirected the points. Other Sword tried to get him with his sword, but Kai easily kicked him in the face and stole the second sword. It seemed to be a sabre, with it’s much smoother and cleaner edge, a stark difference to the serrated one. 

Grapple tried to shoot his hook and tie Kai up, but he easily caught it between his two blades and spun into a familiar fiery tornado. Grapple soon found himself tied up with Spear and Trident and keeping with the momentum Kai hurled the three as hard as he could at the mech. Apparently the extra weight was all it needed to be knocked off balance since as soon as they collided with the thing with a loud _clunk_ , all four started falling off the edge.

Kai smiled at his work when he felt something just barely brush past his arm.

Right, he forgot about Starfish.

He turned around and started bolting at him both swords poised to attack. Starfish raised his weapons, preparing to deflect.

But just at the last second, Kai jumped over him. Just as he was behind him, he slashed the bottom of the tank with the serrated sword. Just as Kai’s feet connected with the roof, he could barely make out an “uh oh” before the guy went _flying_. 

Kai turned around and realized he hadn’t taken care of Sharkhead. His hands were shaking and he was staring at Kai with wide eyes.

Kai smirked.

“Boo.” 

He let out a shriek and grabbed Other Sword before jumping off the building. A weird mech that vaguely resembled a jellyfish suddenly rose, and Kai could just barely make out the two flying away.

Checking to make sure Sharkhead and Other Sword were really gone and wouldn’t follow him, Kai gripped both swords and kept running.

He almost broke down the roof door but didn’t pay it much attention as he bolted down to the floor and room he was staying in.

Not wanting to waste any time, he just threw the gi over his school clothes, but not before taking off the gloves and hoodie. It felt….weird, but still much more natural than just the clothes.

He clipped the swords to the sheath on his back, not being able to suppress the smile as they just barely fit.

The ninja hood rested comfortably on his face and Kai let out a sigh of relief, but quickly snapped back to attention as he heard an explosion nearby.

Right, city under attack.

Bolting back up to the roof, Kai took in a deep breath….and jumped off the edge.

Keeping his eyes open, Kai grabbed the side of the flagpole, spinning to build momentum. Finally, he let go, shooting himself into the fray.

_thump_

“What the-?!?” 

His fighting became a dance as he tore through the ocean themed enemies. His movements became smooth and practiced and the enemies were mowed down by his attacks. Soon enough, he found the fiery sparks of his Spinjitzu tornado surrounding him once again as unsuspecting enemies found themselves sucked in.

A bright grin spread across his face the longer he was fighting. _Gosh_ , he missed this.

“Who are you?” the question snapped him out of his blissful dance.

Turning his head, he saw a young kid hesitantly walking toward him. Now that he had snapped out of his daze, the city block was almost completely empty, save for the groaning enemies on the ground. Jeez, he got really far from his apartment.

He just gave the kid a smile. He was so small, probably only six or seven. “Call me Shogun.”

The kid’s eyes lit up. “You’re fiery spin thing!!! It was so cool!!” 

Kai chuckled. Wow, he really did miss this.

“Thanks, kid. You should probably go back to your parents, got it. Stay safe.” 

The kid nodded and ran back, but not before exclaiming “Kick Garmadon’s butt!”

And then he was back into the fray.

* * *

“Nya, how’s it looking?” Lloyd spoke into the comms. Another day, another Garmadon attack.

“Not that bad. Most of the grounders are still trying to get past Zane’s ice blockade and the fliers are being handled by you and Jay.” She replied. “But Cole said he saw a massive group heading for Downtown. Mind checking it out?”

“On it.” He responded. “Zane, if you’re sure the ice will hold I need you to come to Main Street.” 

Once he heard an “affirmative” Lloyd took off.

But as he found his way to Downtown, it was shockingly empty of Garmadon’s forces. The Jellyfish and Stingray Mechs in the area that weren’t trying to shoot him down were picking up defeated soldiers with Crab Mechs defending them.

Odd.

As he kept looking, Lloyd noticed a bit that seemed very out of the ordinary. It was a cluster of Jellyfish mechs, their chains all tangled. 

Eh, whatever. Maybe they just got too close to each other.

Launching a missile at them they exploded in a glorious fireball that Kai would be proud of.

Just as he was about to return to the other, something caught his eye.

A falling piece of red.

It wasn’t common to see that kind of red amongst Gamadon’s army. Usually, he stuck with orange for crabs not red, so that could only mean-

Lloyd sucked in a breath.

_Civilian._

“Hang on!” He called, though he doubted they could hear him.

Lloyd was in a dive barely a second later.

They were falling fast, but his mech was faster. Just as they were about to collide with the ground, he manipulated the claws of his dragon to grab them, but still giving it a bit of leeway so they wouldn’t be too hurt. He heard a panicked squawk as Lloyd threw them up and spun the mech to catch them on the back.

“Are you-” Lloyd sucked in a breath as he cast a glance back.

Clinging to the back of his mech was _Shogun_.

“Yeah, I’m good.” he responded, looking up and not at all worried he probably would’ve died had Lloyd not caught him. “Thanks for the save.”

“No problem.” Lloyd quickly responded, looking back forward. Right, right, Lloyd had met Shogun, but the Green Ninja hadn’t. He couldn’t blow his cover. “So what brings you here? Ninjago City isn’t exactly a vacation spot.”

Shogun let out a bark. “On the contrary, I’ve heard the beach is great this time of year.” With impeccable balance he stood up and deflected a pair of laser blasts before dropping back down. His movements were so fluid and smooth Lloyd could’ve sworn he didn’t have bones.

“Heard the Garmalarm and found myself in the neighborhood. Thought you would appreciate the help.”

Lloyd cast a quick glance back before keeping his eyes focused on the dangers in front of him.

“Hang on!” He called. Less than a second later, he tucked his mech into a wide barrel roll and fired several of his own shots, each on landing their mark. The mechs he hit crashed to the ground in a fiery blaze.

Shogun let out a whoop. “You’re pretty good at this!” he complimented. “But can you do _this_?” 

And then he jumped off.

Lloyd could’ve sworn he felt his stomach drop. He was just about to send his mech into a dive to catch him….when suddenly he turned into a flaming tornado.

W H A T?!?!?!

Tornado Shogun landed on a passing Jellyfish Mech and _melted through the glass_. The General inside let out a fearful shriek and abandoned ship, dropping out of the emergency hatch. Shogun grabbed ahold of the controls and sent the mech flying forward, lasers blazing and took out the next group of mechs.

He brought the mech in a loop over top Lloyd and jumped out of the hole he previously made, landing on the dragon mech just as the Jellyfish mech crashed into another, going up in a glorious fireball.

He smirked. Lloyd couldn’t help but laugh.

“That was awesome!” He complimented. “What was that?”

“Spinjitzu.”

“Really?!?” Lloyd exclaimed. Jeez, he and the others were missing out! Maybe they should start taking some of Uncle Wu’s lessons more seriously, because that looked _awesome!_

“Lloyd, how’s it looking?” He heard Kai ask through the comms. Lloyd panicked.

“It’s looking good, Red. Picked up a _passenger_ on the way.” He put heavy emphasis on “passenger,” hoping the others would put two and two together. “His name’s Sh-” Lloyd almost slipped but just barely caught himself. 

_The Green Ninja_ did not know Shogun, only _Lloyd Garmadon_ did. 

“What’s your name?” He asked. Shogun looked confused for a split second.

“Shogun. You’re the Green Ninja, right?” He shot back. A general tried to land on the dragon but Shogun quickly knocked them off.

“Yep. Call me Green for short.” He responded. He turned his attention back to the comms. “His name’s Shogun and he took care of the Generals Downtown.”

“Really?” Kai responded. “Huh, well we’re cleaning up the rest of ‘em. Garmadon actually left without demanding a fight from you, and the rest seem to be following.”

“Great.” Lloyd responded. He turned back to Shogun. “Anywhere in particular you want me to drop you off?”

He shook his head. “Just drop me off on any old roof and I’ll be fine.”

Lloyd brought his dragon to the nearest _intact_ building. Shogun hopped off and landed with ease. 

There was a pause. Gosh it was just like that night on the roof.

Well, this time he wasn’t going to wait for Shogun to leave. This time he was-

“Well, I should probably head back soon. So, see ya around?”

Dang it.

“Yeah, but uh,” Lloyd started. “If you don’t mind, I want you to meet the rest of my team. Meet me on this roof tonight?”

Shogun nodded. “I can make it. Can’t wait to meet them.”

Then he started bolting. For once, Lloyd didn’t worry as he jumped off the opposite edge. That was the third time he’d seen him jump off a seemingly impossible height, and every time he was fine. Why would this one be any different?

“Lloyd, we’re gonna be a little late back to base.” He heard Nya start. “You think you can handle yourself?”

Lloyd laughed. “I’ll be fine. I just gotta pick up my backpack from school. You don’t mind meeting me there?”

“Yeah, course.” She paused for a moment. “Besides, me and Zane need to do a….thing and school too.”

Lloyd raised a brow but didn’t push. If Nya wanted to explain she would.

“Got it. See you there.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So.......Lloyd has no idea what's waiting for him when he gets back >:D
> 
> Honestly, this chapter was fun but also so hard to write since fighting.....hard. But it made it all the more satisfying to finish since I've over come one of the hardest aspects of writing for me, so that's a plus.
> 
> And, even though no one asked, I'm gonna clear up the comment Movie Kai made last chap about Lloyd Master Building. Anyone can build, it's just a matter of putting two pieces together, but Master Building is different. Master Building is the whoosh whoosh move around at incredible speeds thing, which only Movie Lloyd seems to use. It's also his "thing" in the game, and I wanted to incormepate it. The reason I'm explaining this here is because I don't know if I'll ever get around to properly explaining it.
> 
> Also, major thanks to ChaoticEvilBean, for helping me write the fight scene and Bluepaw265, you gave me the last nudge I needed to finish the chapter :DDD
> 
> OH WAIT BEFORE I FORGET SOMEONE DREW MORE FANART AND I SCREAMED FOR A SOLID MINUTE I HIGHLY RECOMMEND CHECKING THEM OUT THEY MAKE GREAT CONTENT - https://ninja-knox-ur-sox-off.tumblr.com/post/642125754042384384/been-meaning-to-draw-this-for-a-while-skamoewf


	10. Chapter 10

Kai was starting to regret telling Lloyd to just drop him off on any old building. Granted, it probably would have revealed his identity, or very heavily hinted to it at least, but he couldn’t help but wish he’d thought ahead.

It had started with him heading back to the apartment. Roof hopping was the easiest way, but he needed to be very careful and watch out for the crumbling buildings and dodging construction crews.

He was mostly mulling over what had happened during the battle and couldn’t help but feel a little silly.  _ Of course _ Lloyd and the others had secret identities, it just made sense. How else would they avoid the hassle of being harassed by the citizens?

Anyways, he'd arrived back at the apartment(which somehow hadn’t been hit during the attack despite being so close to the ocean), went up to his room….only to realize his backpack was still at school. 

His  _ backpack _ , which contained the important papers he needed to fill out.

So now he had to run  _ all the way back _ to the school, which was proving to be more difficult than it had that morning. The roofs weren’t an option since he’d very quickly gotten told off by one of the construction works who had also decided to tell  _ all the other construction workers _ with his walkie talking to look out for a kid in a grey shirt who was “trying to be a ninja but was just going to get himself hurt.”

So now he was stuck walking, and dodging the craters  _ and _ moving around the people in a timely manner was much more difficult than it looked. He didn’t allow himself to do any fancy moves since that would draw  _ way _ too much attention, but it was so. Freaking.  _ Slow _ .

And then there was the fact that he felt like he was missing something important and it was driving him  _ nuts _ .

At least it couldn’t get worse-

“Smith! Wait up!”

…...you know what, he’s done thinking. At all. His head needs to be emptied of all thoughts because there’s no other way this could keep happening like that.

He turned around and internally cursed.

Nya  _ and _ Zane. And he definitely couldn’t run now.

“Zane….Nya….” he greeted, carefully keeping his tone neutral. “What are you guys doing here?”

The two shared a quick look, and Kai predicted it was going to get  _ really _ awkward.

“We are heading to the school.” Zane answered. The words were clunky and very obviously not the truth, but Kai didn’t press. He didn’t want to make them any more distrustful than they already were.

Instead, he nodded. “Me too.”

“Would you….” Nya started, and if Kai wasn’t mistaken, she sounded….nervous? “Would you mind if we join you?”

“Um….” he thought for a moment. It couldn’t have been more than a few hours since their confrontation in the hallway, and only about a day since the talk on the roof, right? There’s very little chance he blipped out of existence or something, so he couldn’t help but wonder what caused this sudden change in attitude?

Did something else….happen?

“Sure.” he finally answered. He honestly didn’t know what could have happened, and they didn’t seem like they wanted to cause trouble. If anything, they might know a faster way to the school.

The other two nodded and joined him, Nya on his right and Zane on her right. They were walking at a decent pace, but the silence was deafening. 

“So….what brings you here?” Nya asked him after a moment.

“Oh, um…Kai disappeared when the alarm went off and I tried to go find him. I got pretty far, actually.” He shrugged.

“You….you did?” Nya said in disbelief. Kai nodded.

“He was pretty nice to me, and I got worried when he just up and disappeared. When I figured he wasn’t at school anymore, I thought maybe he was somewhere in the city close by. When the attack ended, I started heading home, but realized I left my backpack at school.” Wow, he was getting pretty good at these half-truths.

“Well, Kai’s fine. He met up with us during the attack and after we….do that thing at school I’m going to head home.” She answered.

“Good.” he answered. “Good…..” 

Okay, so he wasn’t hurt during the fight. At least, probably not. He doubted Nya could explain if Kai was hurt in the fight, and they’ve probably had to lie in the past. On top of that, there was a chance he was  _ hiding _ an injury-

Okay, so his status was still a maybe.

“Are….are Jay and Lloyd okay too?” he couldn’t help but ask. He wanted to ask about Cole and Wu too, but he had no way of knowing them in their eyes and that would be  _ incredibly _ suspicious.

“Yeah. Yeah, they’re fine. Jay went home and Lloyd’s meeting us at the school.”

“Mh.” he responded. Good, so Jay was probably safe and Lloyd was-

At the school.

The  _ school _ .

Chen was staying after school……

_ The prank _ .

_ Lloyd was at the school when Chen was planning the prank _ .

**_O h n o_ ** .

“So, um, Smith. I just wanted to say-”

“Oh no.” he said out loud. “LLOYD!!!!”

He barely registered the confused looks of Nya and Zane before he  _ bolted _ . Screw not being suspicious, Lloyd could be in danger!

Luckily his panic and slight anger seemed to make its way onto his face and body language, if the way people practically jumped out of his way as he ran was anything to tell. Through the noise of the street, he could barely make out the calls and footsteps of Nya and Zane as they followed, trying to keep up but slowly falling behind.

It didn’t take long before he lost their noises to the crowd.

Just as he came to the school, luck for once seemed to be on his side as the light was red and the crosswalk signal had started. Bolting up the first set of stairs, Kai started trying to look for the blonde.

_ There he was!!!! _

Lloyd was standing ever so innocently at the bottom of the second stairs that led into the building. From his distance, Kai could just barely see who he assumed was Chen and a few others, with smug faces as they were preparing to dump a bucket of something onto him.

_ Not on Kai’s watch. _

With an extra burst of speed, Kai pressed onward.

There wouldn’t be any time for Lloyd to dodge it. If he shouted, he was more likely to freeze than run, especially considering what Kai had learned about Lloyd. 

Casting a quick glance up, he saw they were beginning to dump the container.

With only one idea left, Kai took a deep breath. This…..wasn’t going to be fun, but it was his last option.

Sorry, Lloyd.

As he reached Lloyd, he closed his eyes and  _ slammed _ into him.

Lloyd let out a panicked squawk upon the contact, but actually held his ground decently well. While Lloyd was quickly sent to the ground, Kai was sent back a bit with the rebound.

_ Splash! _

Kai immediately tensed. Whatever they dumped, it was cold and sticky and  _ wet _ .

All around him, he could hear the murmurs and whispers of the students, as well as a few camera shutters. He could practically feel their stares tearing into him.

Very carefully, Kai lifted up his hands and wiped off the mystery substance from around his eyes and carefully opened them.

The first thing he saw was Lloyd, sprawled on his back on the steps, eyes wide and mouth gaped in shock and horror, it soon became clear why.

Kai hesitantly looked down at his chest only to find pure black. Rubbing the substance in his fingers, Kai realized he’d been completely  _ drenched _ in black paint.

_ Oh joy _ .

“Smith are you alright, dude!?!” Chen exclaimed. He suddenly came bolting from the open school doors and running down the steps. How he got down here so fast Kai wasn’t sure. 

Kai looked at his thoroughly ruined clothes, then back at Chen, briefly glancing at the staring crowd and Lloyd, who was slowly inching away.

A small thought entered his head.

There…..there might be a way to spin this in his favor. Or at least the very least, against Chen.

He prayed that this would work, because if it didn’t he would just look stupid and possibly make him and Lloyd look even  _ worse _ .

“Are you kidding me?” He asked, keeping his voice tight. “Are you actually serious?”

“What?” 

Kai spread out his arms. “I mean, I get I’m the new kid, but c’mon! I’ve only been here for  _ two days _ !”

The whispers of the crowd started increasing as Chen started looking more panicked.

“I didn’t mean it, it was an accident! It was meant for-“

“So you mean that you telling me to meet you on the roof for a prank wasn’t true? That you _just so_ _happened_ to be perching above the same door I was going through? That you _just so happened_ to _dump the paint_ as I was walking through?” Kai crossed his arms, slightly shivering as he felt the cloth squish. 

“Yes?” He realized how bad that sounded as the whispers increased.

Chen was growing more pale and Kai caught more than a few skeptic looks pointed toward him.

“It was an accident, I swear! I didn’t see you-“

“I was sprinting from across the street! People were literally jumping out of the way!” Kai snarled, throwing up his hands. Okay, that part was admittedly on Chen, how the heck did he not notice?

“I didn’t even want to hang out with you, all I wanted was to get my backpack!!! But I came because it was the  _ polite thing to do!!! _ ” Kai yelled, and he didn’t miss Chen’s flinch.

“Listen, how about I take you back to my place? We can clean you up and-”

Kai let out a genuine laugh. Okay, wow, this was  _ way _ too easy. Did he really think that would work?

“No thanks, I’d rather not.” He narrowed his eyes in a harsh glare. “Excuse me for not trusting the guy who doused me in  _ paint _ .” He spat, the venom from the words clear.

“I-“

“I’d recommend leaving before you dig yourself into an even deeper hole.” Kai warned.

Chen opened his mouth to try and defend himself, but noticed the crowd. He blushed a deep red before bolting off, closely followed by a pair of girls who were wearing pink and blue respectively and a small group of boys, probably fellow cheerleaders.

Realizing the conflict was over, the crowd started dispersing and Kai let himself release the act and relaxed. That went…. _ way better _ than he expected. If Chen had pointed out just how obviously he’d slammed into Lloyd it would’ve been over.

Speaking of which….

Kai turned to Lloyd who was almost off the stairs. Strangely though, he hadn’t stood up, he was still on his back.

Kai offered a hand. “Sorry about hitting you, it was the only plan I had to get you out of the way in time.”

Lloyd stared. Like, he  _ stared _ . Mouth wide, eyes big as dinner plates and focused right at Kai and the hand he’d offered.

Kai glanced at his hand. His black, paint-coated hand that was still dripping a bit.

“Oh. Right. Sorry.” Kai tried to brush off the paint, but it didn’t work very well. Most of the excess dripped to the ground and it took a few tries, but eventually, he got it so you could at least see parts of his skin in some places…..sort of.

Kai offered his hand a second time, and this time Lloyd took it, albeit very hesitantly. Kai pulled him to his feet with ease, slightly surprised at how  _ light _ he was.

“Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you when I pushed you, did I?” He asked. Lloyd stared for a few more seconds before shaking his head.

“I‘m fine” 

Kai nodded. “Good.”

“Lloyd! Smith!” Fast-paced footsteps sounded behind him, but they abruptly came to a stop. 

Kai turned around. The two were staring at him wide-eyed and Nya seemed to be breathing hard from the run.

“What happened to you?” She asked.

Kai shrugged. “Paint prank from Chen.” 

“Oh.”

The four stood in silence. Lloyd kept looking between him and the other two, clearly noticing the strange tension between them.

“Hey, uh.” Nya started, staring off to the side. “My place is pretty close. If you want to come, you could wash off there.”

Now it was Kai’s turn to stare.

Okay, something  _ definitely _ happened in between the hallway and the attack.

Kai looked down at his body. He didn’t have access to a washing machine  _ or _ a shower, and by himself his best bet was to wash off in the ocean or river, although he felt like some people wouldn’t like the fact he was getting paint in the water.  _ And _ Nya’s place was probably stocked with soap which he could use to clean his clothes instead of just throwing them out and stealing more…..

“That would be great.” He finally answered.

* * *

Getting to the Smith household, Kai could help but stare.

The house was  _ huge _ . So much bigger than the forge and almost the size of  _ the Bounty _ !

He couldn’t help but feel a little jealous.

Nya fished out some keys from her back pocket and unlocked the door.

“Hold on, let’s hose you down first.” Nya stopped Kai, gesturing to the side of the house. “Lloyd, Zane, you guys can head inside. Smith, with me.”

The two nodded. “We’ll let Kai know we’re here.” Lloyd offered boring heading through the front door. Zane seemed a bit more hesitant to leave than Lloyd, casting an extra glance before going inside.

“C’mon.” She beckoned for him to follow, which he did quietly. She easily unlocked a tall wooden side gate and walked in.

The side yard wasn’t anything special. A few trash cans and boxes, as well as a bike with cheesy flames painted on the slim metal leaning against one of the walls. There was a small faucet coming out of the wall with a long green hose attached.

“Hey, uh…..if you don’t mind me asking, are your parents home?” Kai asked. This could either go decently well, or  _ very _ bad.

Nya shook her head. “Nah, they’re out of town. Their jobs make them travel around a lot so we don’t get to see them often.”

They still had their parents. They  _ still had their parents _ .

Yeah they weren’t around much, but they were still  _ there _ . They weren’t dead, or abandon them, or  _ who knows what _ -

Nya grabbed the hose and Kai snapped out of his thoughts. Right, right, he had time to think of that later, right now he was covered in paint. He stood with his legs apart and arms out wide, preparing for the onslaught of water.

“Ready?” She asked. Kai nodded and slammed his eyes shut.

Hopefully it wouldn’t be that baaaaaaaaAAAAA OH FIRST MASTER THAT WAS COLD-

Kai tensed as the freezing water doused him. The pressure wasn’t insane, but it was definitely more than enough to wash off some of the paint.

Slowly, the clumpy paint was being washed off, replaced with the bone-chilling water.

“I’m gonna do your face.”

Kai held his breath, expecting it to take a while, but was thoroughly surprised when it only lasted a few seconds.

He opened his eyes, slightly confused.

“I didn’t think you’d like being sprayed in the face, so I just got off enough so it wouldn’t drip.” she answered, starting to coil up the hose.

“Okaaaayyyyyy then.” Kai answered. “So….I’m gonna head inside then….”

Kai started to turn around and walk to the front door when suddenly-

“I’m sorry!” Nya blurted.

Kai turned around and stared, slightly confused.

“It wasn’t okay for me to yell at you like that, especially since it was a misunderstanding.” She continued. 

Oh.

_ Oh _ .

“It’s fine, I-” Kai started, but she interrupted.

“No, it’s not okay! I was suspicious of you for no reason and hurt you! I-I treated you like everyone else treats Lloyd!!!” She looked off to the side in shame, cheeks burning.

Oh. So that’s the realization that brought about this apology.

Kai took a few steps toward her but remained at a respectable distance. “Nya, I don't blame you for the way you acted. But yes, you are right, it did hurt.” Nya flinched. “But I was never mad at you. You had every reason to think I was lying.”

Now Nya looked up, slightly confused.

“I’m not from here, and I had no idea what was going on here. To be honest, I’m still not completely sure. But from what I’ve learned, I’d say you reacted appropriately.”

He took another step and placed a hand on her shoulder. “And the fact you’re apologizing for your actions shows me you regret them, and that’s good enough for me.”

Nya was staring wide-eyed, as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“Is….is this the part where we make up hug or…..” Kai laughed.

“I mean,” he gestured at his still slightly paint-covered clothes and the fact he was dripping wet. “If you’d like a watery paint hug, be my guest, but I’d prefer to get clean first.”

Nya snickered before offering out her hand. “How about a handshake then?”

Kai gave a small smile back and took it.

Maybe things would work out after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So you know how I mentioned some scenes were planned ahead? Well Kai getting dumped with paint was one of them :D
> 
> This one was actually really fun to write, especially Kai twisting the conversation with Chen.
> 
> And before you ask, yes the parent thing is going to come up again :D

**Author's Note:**

> And if you wanna, go check out my Tumblr - https://kittydemon9000.tumblr.com


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